When my kids were growing up we would play a game to pass the time called the million dollar game. Of course this only worked if I had them trapped in the car or at the dinner table. But it was a lot of fun and helped them to see what was important. Due to inflation I now call it the billion dollar game or my 3 steps to getting what you really want.
Step 1: Imagine that you had a billion dollars.
It helps if you can close your eyes and really think about having basically an endless amount of money. See the numbers on your bank statement. Get a vision of piles of cash on your kitchen table or in your wallet or purse.
Step 2: Now that you have all this money. Let’s talk about what you want.
What would you do? What would you buy? Would you quit your job? Would you buy an island or a mountain or both? What kind of clothes would you wear? Who would you help out? And what kind of car or cars would you drive? What would your body be like? Would you hire a personal trainer and chef? What about your house or houses? What would the kitchen look like? Would it be a huge mansion with lots of rooms or maybe destination is more important to you and you would own homes all over the world? What are all the things on your wish list that you would want not just for yourself but also for others? Think of all the things that would be possible for you if you had a billion dollars.
Step 3: Imagine you have everything you want.
This really works best if you close your eyes. Imagine you’re enjoying all the wonderful things you have bought. You’re wearing the clothes, riding in the jet or sitting on your yacht. You’ve helped all your family and friends and done all the charity work you’ve ever dreamed of. You’ve made a difference in the world. You bought the company you used to work for and made all the changes you always thought would make things better or maybe you hired someone to do all that. Imagine your life with everything you’ve ever wanted to do completed. Now check in with yourself. How does all this make you feel? Happy, successful., accomplished, worthy, proud, maybe peaceful, grateful, arrived or powerful, accepted, maybe beautiful and free?
Now that you’ve done this process and had this experience with yourself you can take a step back and see that what you really want is to feel happy, peaceful, satisfied, and many others. We fool ourselves into thinking if we could change the world we would be happy but the real answer is to change ourselves and then we can have all these great feelings in the world we actually live in. What if there was a way to feel peaceful, successful and loved living where we live, working at the job you have today and being in the relationship you’re in (or not in) right now? This is where you can make a real difference in your world.
So where do you start? Gratitude will take you a long way. What are you thankful for this Holiday Season?
