July 2017 - The Millionaire Hippie

Don’t Take Advice From People Who Barely Know Who They Are

Post published:July 31, 2017
Reading time:11 mins read

Being online and posting so much stuff on the Internet all the time, I get a lot of feedback, good and bad. Feedback is fine with me, because the meaning inherent in giving feedback is, “I’m giving you this feedback, because I think you can do something with it. But if you choose to throw it away, then I’m fine with that.”

Some feedback I incorporate into my life and some I don’t. No one ever comes after me with a battleaxe. But advice – now that’s a different beast altogether.

People who give advice are giving it because they know something or they think they know something better than you. They are imbibing all of these pearls of advice (wisdom) over you so that you can someday aspire to be as good as them. But, seriously, would you ever be able to get close to them? Never!

The meaning inhere in advice is that “I’m giving you this advice, because I am better than you somehow, and you better take this advice. Otherwise, you are going to burn in the fires of hell forever and ever.” (more…)

When You Give Up Consumerism, It Frees Up Time For Creativity

Post published:July 24, 2017
Reading time:11 mins read

I feel like I’ve been blind all of my life, and only now am I beginning to see the light. It’s a miracle. The light that I am beginning to see, is the truth of how many hundreds of hours I wasted going off to malls, online and offline, and wasting so many precious seconds on consumerism.

“Oh, I’m not going to buy anything. I’m not spending money. I’m just going to do some window shopping.” So much precious time was wasted on nothing. On buying items that I didn’t really need. Then, returning those said items, because I just didn’t have the space or the money for them. From there, going on and repeating the cycle, a hundred thousand times.

Every single day, every single week, every single month. It was all the same. My life was about shopping. It was about consumerism. The point of my life wasn’t to live, but to buy or pretend to buy or window shop or browse. All of it was the same. (more…)

How Many Things In Your Life Are You Grateful For?

Post published:July 19, 2017
Reading time:3 mins read

Do you live a privileged life? I can guess that you do. How can I guess that so easily? Well, you are probably sitting in a comfortable chair, sipping on some beverage, on a laptop, or a tablet, reading this article on the internet. (Have you ever tried a gratitude meditation?)

If that isn’t a privileged life, I don’t know what is. There are a hundred things you have that millions of people on this planet don’t. But, feeling gratitude isn’t about feeling bad about the fact that we are better off than others. That’s not we are doing here.

Gratitude is all about focusing on the positive things in our lives. There are so many positive things that happen on a daily basis with us. Hundreds of them, in fact.

But, as human beings, we have a laser-like focus on the one or two negative things that might happen.

(more…)

Why Are So Many People So Interested In Supporting Creative People?

Post published:July 17, 2017
Reading time:11 mins read

Recently, a friend of mine and I were chatting about how there are so many communities out there, Patreon, being just one of them, that is a way for ‘normal’, i.e., non-creative people, to support the ‘creative’ folks. Supporting creative people who are not like them.

The creative people are the dreamers, the doers, and the change-makers of society. But that crazy, kooky way of life, resulted in the past a lot of starving artist mode. Where you lived in your parent’s basement until you made it big (if you ever did).

But the Internet, and all of those amazing creative communities online, MySpace, YouTube, Facebook, Instagram, and so many more, are all changing the way the world views creative people. For the first time in history, everyone who is connected to the Internet can view creative people from all over planet Earth.

Someone in Okhlahoma can listen to a Turkish band. And anyone from Australia can be a fan of a indy band from a little town in Alaska.

The possibilities are endless. (more…)

If You Want To Be Anything, You Have To Work Like A Dog. Or Do You?

Post published:July 10, 2017
Reading time:11 mins read

As with everything else in life, I come across exactly what I need to hear in the moment. It is exactly what I need to read in that moment. Or be with.

This quote came across my laptop screen from a friend, who shared it with me, because he was going to use it as his new mantra. I agreed with him, because I am in this mode of being lazy. Wanting to follow the pace of nature, I realized that nature never hurries, yet everything, everything gets done in the perfect of time.

I am a Type-A perfectionist child of perfectionist, high-achieving parents. My parents had a really hard life, and they always had to work really hard to get anything done. They had to do, do, do and do some more in order to live a good life. They instilled those same work ethics in me.

Burning out and killing my body, mind, and spirit at the same time – it was a typical way for me to live in this world.

So much so that I would end up in contorted postures where my shoulder spasmed so much or my back was so rigid that I could barely get out of bed in the morning. After medicating myself, and numbing myself as I could, I would get out of bed, to push myself hard once again. Over and over again. (more…)

Medium Readers, Followers, And Subscribers Welcome!

Post published:July 9, 2017
Reading time:2 mins read

I created this special page for all of my Medium readers, and followers, so I could thank you virtually through this video, which might not mean much to you, but means a lot to me. I'm grateful to be able to thank each one of you, with this video, for taking the time to read my content, and either commenting on it, or following me, or just holding it within your body and taking it in and integrating it with your soul. All of it matters to me so much. I wanted to request you to subscribe to my list below. I ensure that this Medium list gets only the special posts, or products that I create, so it is absolutely crucial to you and everything that I do with you. My Time On Medium I have been writing on Medium for quite a while now, and I wanted to start bringing my medium readers into the fold little by little. It…

Are You Feeling Like An Imposter In Your New Endeavour?

Post published:July 7, 2017
Reading time:3 mins read

When I first start anything, it might be an online business or a new meditation practice, I always feel like I am the worst in that specific field. I am the only one in the whole world who has no idea what she's doing (have you ever tried an imposter syndrome meditation?). According to Wikipedia, Impostor syndrome (also known as impostor phenomenon or fraud syndrome or the imposter experience) is a concept describing high-achieving individuals who are marked by an inability to internalize their accomplishments and a persistent fear of being exposed as a "fraud." As you can see, Imposter Syndrome affects high achievers. And it affects them when they are doing a lot of things outside of their comfort zone. Imposter syndrome crops up often in the entrepreneurs that I meet on a daily basis. This is because they are always working outside of their comfort zone, and that makes them feel like they are constantly having to perform at a…

What Does Your Creative Muse Look Like?

Post published:July 4, 2017
Reading time:3 mins read

Recently, I have started communing and chatting more vehemently and outwardly with my Muse. She’s been in my life for decades now. But only recently have I really started talking about this not-so-imaginary friend and guide that has been helping me with my creative projects for the past 20 years. I couldn’t do without her, and I would definitely have a hard time writing the thousands of words I write every day without her by my side.

I have been reading a lot of books by best-selling authors on Creativity who have been espousing the value of their own Muse. Stephen King’s On Writing, and Elizabeth Gilbert’s Big Magic are just two that come to mind.

Every single creative person on the planet has a Muse whether they are aware of them or not. These guides are forever helping us on our creative path. Guiding us off the cliffs that we sometimes get on, wanting to commit creative suicide, and helping us back onto the path of creating, creating, and more creating. (more…)

Hell No To Fuck Yes – Make That Transition

Post published:July 3, 2017
Reading time:11 mins read

I notice a curious trend among people nowadays. They are never truly excited about anything they are doing. Is it ‘uncool’ to be excited about anything anymore? Are we supposed to maintain a facade of boredom and cynicism on the outside? Or is it that nothing exciting happens on Earth anymore, and we need to travel into space to experience anything new and meaningful?

Drugs don’t do it anymore either. After the hundredth hit, even drugs seem to lose their magic.

Not only are people bored out of their minds, but they are also spending way too much time on things that make them feel like shit day in and day out.

Do You Have Anything You Are Saying Fuck Yes To?

I heard a saying the other day – I don’t remember who it was and I apologize for that (I think it was Mark Manson). It went this like – If you aren’t saying ‘Fuck Yes’ to something, then it should be a hell no.

Translation: If you are not excited about something that it almost makes you shit your pants with excitement, then it means, you need to stay the hell away from that endeavour, and go find something that makes you shit with excitement. Or almost shit with excitement. (more…)