How are you responding to the events taking place in YOUR world? We may believe that things taking place in “the” world are not affecting us because we are witnessing and hearing events taking place on a television screen in the safety and comfort of our own homes…. But the truth is, we are all part of the current economic situation, and if something is happening to “the” world, it is happening to “our” personal world too. And vice versa. 

As many of you know, I do not watch television as a general rule. It is downright depressing and adds nothing to my own personal world and what is going on it. I have found that the more I stay away from the television set, the more I am able to keep my head clear, stay positive, and focus on creating my own reality of what I want to see and hear and experience in my life.

Recently, though, I have been plugging in, intentionally, to the events taking place with respect to the bailout, the mortgage and foreclosure crisis, and now the auto industry concerns. I have been watching, for the first time in MY lifetime, a government and people that are completely lost, scrambling to act and respond to events that seem to be completely out of control. And it seems that as current leaders attempt to respond to the chaos using traditional models and methods of economic stimulus - it JUST DOESN’T HOLD UP.

There was a time when the U.S. and all the other countries of the world could act independently. But times have changed. And what I am seeing through all of this is the truth and reality of life revealing itself to the world - and everyone is waking up to this truth - we are all one.

Technology has brought the world together like never before. And I think everyone would agree that while it was developing over the past 10 years with the advent of the internet and access to computers, that this was seen as a good thing because of the ability to reach across the world in a nano-second through email, ebay, google, whatever.

I don’t think the greedy people of this world, however, realized that because of becoming so interconnected financially to the rest of the world, it would create an interdependency that could never be taken back.

For the first time in history, the U.S. is now having to humble itself to the reality that it is not the center of the Universe. And other countries who may have not felt as powerful as the U.S. are now able to clearly see and experience how their place and people on the planet are an integral part of how we move forward.

It is a beautiful thing. The financial crisis is causing the world to wake up and recognize its oneness.  We are having one of the most incredible shifts in consciousness in the history of the human race - and if you recognize that - you will find incredible joy and comfort in the midst of the chaos.

The question is - HOW ARE YOU HOLDING UP? How are you going to choose to participate in this global shift in consciousness? What is going to be your part in supporting the world as the truth about your role on the planet is revealed?

There is no right or wrong answer here. It could be as simple as humbling yourself. It could be accepting where you are right now in your life, for better or for worse. It could be that you develop compassion and understanding for others and their personal financial crises. It could be that you become a leader for others by HOLDING UP your dreams and visions of the life and world you wish to see, as many of us are doing in Platinum One Destinations.

We have tremendous opportunity at this very moment to change the course of the human condition. To push for leadership and change. The question is - how are showing up personally in this historic moment? Do you see the opportunity in front of YOU? Do you get how important you are to this movement?

There has never been a better time to make the changes in your life that you have wanted to make. I have found in every single chaotic experience in my life, that it was signaling that a MAJOR change was occuring. And whether or not it was joyful, or painful, in the end, and after the dust settled, I could see the beauty and good that came from it.

Now is the time for YOU to HOLD UP your vision of how you want to see YOUR WORLD. And your personal contribution to how you SHOW UP in your own life, WILL have a major impact on the world. So choose wisely.

It has been said that the flapping of a butterfly wing in China can and has been traced to the cause of major environmental shifts in climate and weather around the world. Are you ready to flap your wings?

Your Partner in Prosperity,

Carol Ann Martin
Founder, Synergy Prosperity Alliance
Synergy Certified, Platinum Executive Leader
Platinum One Destinations, Synergy Marketing Group
Learn more about Platinum One Destinations 

Thank Goodness failure IS an option! Otherwise none of us would be walking right now.  Seriously… if babies were not allowed to fail in learning how to walk, how could they ever do it? Failure MUST be an option.

I know that the saying “failure is not an option” is expressed with good intentions - to inspire people to be driven to succeed and to never give up.  And to never give up is a good thing. However, it is important that we have moments of failure along the way to our goals for several reasons.

Number one reason to fail - it INNOCULATES YOU…

If you take a look at all the very wealthy, successful entrepreneurs of the world, you will find in their stories many, many failures before they reached that “sweet spot”.  Many people, such as Donald Trump, Walt Disney (whom I mentioned in my last post), and so many other famous successful people, have had MANY bankruptcies, made many mistakes, had businesses that failed.  The extremely successful entrepreneurs usually have at least 1-2 failures in attempting to build a business in their portfolio of investments.

Now, when most of us think of bankruptcy, we think of it as the end of the world. We perceive it to be a symbol of everything crashing down, all doors closed, a BIG BLACK MARK on our credit report that will keep us from ever being trusted again.  Did you know that over 50% of bankruptcies in the United States happens to the average American because of medical bills? 

Now I’m not saying that going bankrupt is a good thing. And if we can avoid that, then of course that is the better alternative.  All’s I’m saying is that more people in America experience bankruptcy than you realize, and it is not even due to irresponsible spending.. It’s because of events that happened unexpectedly, and it is more common than you think, and people are learning how to live with it and how to move on from it. The stigma of bankruptcy is beginning to dissolve, because people are ”innoculating” themselves with the fear of it.

And that’s what happens to successful people who pursue a dream, a goal, an idea who experience failure. They face it, go through it, and then, like getting a FLU SHOT, realize they are STILL ALIVE.  They also finally see that it is NOT the end of the world. It gives them the opportunity to review their experience, learn from it, and steer them to seek new ways to rebuild, with the wisdom of what they did before to assist them to pursue again with added knowledge so that they don’t do the same thing the next time.

Having been an entrepreneur in home based business with Platinum One Destinations for the past three years, I can tell you that I have had MANY failures. And, I have also had MANY successes. I share this information with you today because I UNDERSTAND the FEAR of not wanting to fail. I understand how it feels to have a goal that didn’t happen when I wanted it to, and struggling with the frustration, anger, and the funk I got myself in and had to wiggle my way out of.  I also can tell you now though, that facing my fears has given me new confidence, brought me to new levels of wisdom and understanding, that have allowed me to get to the next level.  I couldn’t be where I am today without the failures I have experienced. And it will be the same for you in your journey of direct sales. So, GET USED TO IT!!

The difference with successful people is how they perceive FAILURE.. They choose to see it as a learning opportunity, a chance to reprioritize what is important. And most of all, they use it to assist them to do it again. They faced their fear, went through it, and got to the other side - and each time they did - it made going after their goal that much less scary.

So many people are afraid to go for their goals because they are afraid to fail - BEFORE THEY HAVE EVEN FAILED!! My suggestion is that you FAIL MORE OFTEN as it will immunize you to the fear, and the more you fail, the more confidence you will build, and the more likely you will be to succeed, as you continue to learn and apply and tweak and build more and more information and wisdom to move forward easier and faster.

THAT, my friends, is the SECRET to success. The secret is that success is just a compilation of many failures, some big, some small. And the greater you are willing to fail, the greater your success will be.

Your Partner in Prosperity,

Carol Ann Martin
Founder, Synergy Prosperity Alliance Team
Synergy Certified, Platinum Executive Leader & Instructor
Platinum One Destinations, Synergy Marketing Group
Learn more about Platinum One Destinations

The latest events on Wall Street and Capitol Hill have been some of the most embarrasing, abhorent, rediculous in the world’s history. I have gone through the gamut of emotions regarding these events, as I’m sure you have too.  If you read my last post you will know how I feel about what is occuring, and how I feel about how our elected leaders of this country are responding to it - and it’s not a favorable opinion.

However, I have been searching my soul for the opportunity, the blessing, the lessons from all of this. And I’m happy to say that I’ve found some good in it all.  I’ve gotten myself back again centered in what I know to be truth - and that is that in every situation, there is a purpose. 

And I now can say that I see many key lessons and opportunities to share and educate and inform more people about the value and meaning of having one’s own business, and why now we finally have a way to shed the light on the real “scam” that American people are unknowingly participating in.  The events on Wall Street, which I have no control of, are actually helping people, either by choice or no choice, to finally understand how badly they HAVE BEEN scammed, and how EVEN AFTER THE BAILOUT, THEY ARE CONTINUING TO BE.. And that means only good for those of us in direct sales, network marketing, and home based business, because now we can compare our model of compensation, like the one in Platinum One Destinations,  to the reality of corporate america compensation plans and the distribution of income in this country - and FINALLY BECOME THE BETTER OPTION LOGICALLY TO THE AVERAGE PERSON!!

Now before I continue with a summary of key lessons we can take away from these events as it relates to direct sales, let’s just NAIL this into the ground with the latest news from AIG, the insurance company that received $82 BILLION of the $700 BILLION (almost 10% of the total package) less than a week ago..

Here’s what AIG did THIS WEEK in return for receiving $82 billion dollars of taxpayer’s money (based on investigations conducted by Henry Waxman, who is leading a House Committee investigation:

• AIG held a week-long retreat for its executives at the luxury St. Regis Resort in Monarch Beach, Calif., with a total tab of $440,000 ($200,000 for rooms, $150,000 for meals and $23,000 for the spa. )
• Joseph Cassano, the executive in charge of the company’s financial products division, received more than $280 million over the last eight years. AND, even this week, he is STILL receiving a $1 million-a-month retainer.
• AIG lost over $5 billion in the last quarter of 2007 due its risky financial products division. In March 2008, the company gave CEO Martin Sullivan a cash bonus of over $5 million. And, the board also approved a new compensation contract for Sullivan that gave him a golden parachute of $15 million.

So folks??? Can you SEE IT?? Can you SEE THE ILLEGAL PYRAMID SCHEME that we are ALL UNKNOWINGLY participating in??? The more I see with my own eyes how blatant these events continue to unfold, the more I beginning to rejoice..  It is as if corporate america is BEGGING to say PLEASE SAVE US… But it is not the financial bail out that they need. It is a restructuring of our government, regulations, fair & equitable compensation to all stakeholders in a corporate environment, and leadership. 

Unfortunately the GREED apparently cannot, even with $700 billion dollars, HELP ITSELF, EVEN WHEN THEY KNOW THE ENTIRE WORLD IS WATCHING.  And this is good. Because people everywhere are finally waking up and seeing reality - and we can never go back from awareness.  These events can only cause a HUGE SHIFT in the consciousness of the entire planet as it relates to money and the distribution of it. And THIS IS ALL A GOOD THING..

In a dualistic world, where everything is defined by it’s opposite, or what it is not, there is a tendency to judge what we feel is the worse of the two. It is either “good or bad”, “black or white”, “love or hate”. In this situation, it is either “greed or integrity”.  And folks, when we have such a clear indicator and example of greed, it helps and compells each and every one of us to go to that idea and define for ourselves what we want - and what integrity should look like. And when we have the majority of the people on this planet participating in this activity, participating in this consciousness, we can know that in the end, even though it is going to be difficult, and messy, and painful, that integrity will become the dominant focus, and it will prevail - because what we focus on expands. It’s a natural law. And its FAILPROOF.

So here is a summary of the key lessons, points, and awareness that is GOOD for the planet with respect to the financial situation and how it relates to direct sales:

• The reality that America has been, and is now waking up to the reality that, it is entrenched in the biggest illegal pyramid scheme that can no longer be denied.  There are approximately 400 individuals in this country that maintain the most wealth. And, filtering down, there are select handful of individuals, such as CEO’s of large corporate entities, government officials, etc., that share in the majority of the rest of it.  The majority of people of this country are at the “bottom” of the income distribution pyramid, AND are being asked at this point to pay “UP” the pyramid to replace the income that has already been sucked from them, for it to hopefully “TRICKLE” BACK DOWN…  Doesn’t the idea itself of “TRICKLE DOWN ECONOMICS” clearly communicate a PYRAMID SCHEMATIC????
• This situation has, regardless of cause or blame or reason, shed the light on the reality of income distribution in this country, and the world. Thank-goodness for that!! IT HAD TO BE KNOWN AND UNDERSTOOD by the average American.  This now gives people the emotions, the conviction, and the NEED to turn to other sources of generating income and wealth than the way it has been done before - which was mainly by paying for an education to get a “spot” in the pyramid scheme.
• Home-based business, direct sales, and network marketing, will now become the preferred method to creating and generating personal wealth and financial freedom. Mainly because it is one of the FEW WAYS that people can get started at an affordable investment, regardless of their education, background or skills, and do this from home, using equipment they already own - such as computers, access to the internet, and phone service.
• Both Donald Trump and Robert Kiyosaki, world renown financial entrepreneurs and leaders/educators on generating wealth, recently wrote a book on the value of direct sales and its power to create, like no other means, an opportunity for the average person to become a millionaire. Paul Zane Pilzer, recognized economist and author of many books on wealth strategies and economic trends, predicts that the most millionaires in America over the next 10 years will come from direct sales opportunities.  This situation on Wall Street and Capitol Hill will now drive, more than ever in our history, people to seek alternative sources of generating income - and MOST PEOPLE - will choose home-based business, and direct sales.
• This situation, with the chaos and unfathomable depths of its corruption and its affects on the American and world population, is causing people to turn to their source of faith and spiritual awareness.  People are attempting now to make sense of it all, and/or to just seek peace and understanding.
• This situation will cause a renaissance in spiritual belief, and a call to action of spiritual leaders around the globe to mobilize the planet to incorporate their spiritual beliefs into their pursuit of restoration and rehabilitation.  Up until now, it has been accepted that there must be a separation between spiritual life and government/business life.  People everywhere will now have no other choice but to turn to their beliefs and faith in a higher power to restore themselves and the world to an integrated approach to life.

This situation is causing the people of this planet to WAKE UP and to SEE WITH THEIR OWN EYES what they had not seen, or understood before.  And this can only spawn a drive for change in the American governmental and economic structure. And it can only mean that direct sales and home-based business will become the logical and easiest choice for most people.  And for that, I am extremely grateful. 

For the past three years I have seen the incredible value of the residual income model of direct sales. For the GIFT of working part-time, and creating more time and financial freedom for me to spend more time with my family and children.  Before I started in direct sales, I had been duped just like everyone else into believing that home-based business was the “scam”, that it was “too good to be true”. 

But once I got into this industry, I learned to love it, respect it, and TRULY SEE A PATH TO FREEDOM for myself and others.  NOW IS OUR TIME TO SHINE. And those of us leaders in network marketing now have an opportunity, like NEVER BEFORE IN OUR HISTORY, to make a positive contribution to MANY PEOPLE’S LIVES - without any involvement or intrusion of government or corporate means. And that, to me, is so exciting, and gratifying - to be in a position of TRUE LEADERSHIP to lead people to a REAL PATH of freedom and financial independence…

WHO’S WITH ME!! LET’S GO!!

Your Partner in Prosperity,

Carol Ann Martin
Founder, Synergy Prosperity Alliance
Synergy Certified, Platinum Executive Leader & Instructor
Synergy Marketing Group & Platinum One Destinations
Learn more about Platinum One Destinations 

 Have you ever had one of these kind of days like this poor guy? You have every intention of making it a GREAT day…  You read your goals, say your affirmations or whatever you do to get pumped for the day - and then bam… You find yourself completely out of control of MAKING IT HAPPEN the way you planned and the way your coach or direct sales sponsor tells you to do.. Events that are out of your control begin affecting you and your plans. Almost like someone or something is doing this to you intentionally and laughing all the way..

I got an interesting tip from a law of attraction/spiritual coach and mentor I’ve been seeing for the past year or so.. He told me that I need to see powerlessness as an asset.. I looked at him like he had 3 heads and was speaking Alien… WHAT?? How can powerlessness EVER be an asset?  Now, guys, he knows I have tendencies to be a control freak. He knows I’m an overachiever, dooer, goal getter kinda gal.. So he was purposefully stretching me..

So, I sat with that one for about a week. Powerlessness? Powerlessness? Powerlessness?? I kept saying it over and over again with different tonation thinking that it might come to me if I kept saying the same word differently.. It didn’t..

But, then, I decided to entertain this idea and said, ”O.K.. If I just allowed for a moment this statement to be true for me, just for a tiny little milisecond, what would it mean?”  And then I started to think about times in my life when I felt powerless. REALLY wanting something to happen or somebody to do something that I couldn’t control in the moment - and how frustrated I felt during those times.

But then I thought about how later on - maybe it was within an hour, a day, or even a year.. And in every circumstance or situation, I can honestly say that I’m glad that things turned out the way they did. There was something about the experience that I learned from, grew from, or that was actually in my or someone else’s best interest in the end but I just couldn’t see it in the moment.

I thought about my past relationships, my past jobs, my past misstakes. I thought about the people I’ve wanted to have join my Platinum One Destinations business that never did, about the people who I knew had so much potential and quit before they even got started. There is nothing more frustrating to me than seeing people with potential and desire for their lives bail out on themselves…

But in the end, every time, I’ve been able to see the gift. And how cool it is to have an understanding that we are all one. That everything that operates in this universe is controlled by divine intelligence.  Just take a minute and look closely at a flower sometime. It truly is amazing isn’t it? How incredibly intelligent and perfect it is? How it knows exactly what it needs to do to live, blossom and grow?

And it is not up to me to judge this intelligence in everything and everyone. I have no other choice but to cooperate with it. I can choose to struggle with it - but that’s pointless and useless - as I would never win that battle.  Everyone has their own lessons to learn. And in every experience we have - we are part of a bigger plan that is SO MUCH bigger than our human brains can even understand. 

There is always a reason we have a certain experience. We may not like it, and it may not feel good. But if we can begin to acknowledge & respect the intelligence in all living things, and have comfort in knowing there is a reason for it all - whether it is for ourselves or someone else’s plan for growth or learning in this lifetime, than we can just CHILL OUT.  We can start to cooperate with this power. And when we begin to acknowledge it, respect it, welcome it, recognize it in the MOMENT, we begin to harness a power that is so much greater than human beingness can imagine.

So, if you are currently struggling with circumstances, situations, relationships in your life, in your business, take a moment and recognize that you are powerless. Once you do that, you can begin to shift your focus off the things and people you can’t control, and tap into the true power that is available to you and working through you at all times… And that is the awareness and faith and trust and acknowlegment that you have everything you need in the moment to make the right choices for the highest good for yourself and others. Always, and in All ways..

Your Partner in Prosperity,

Carol Ann Martin
Founder, Synergy Prosperity Alliance
Synergy Certified, Platinum Executive Leader & Instructor
Platinum One Destinations and Synergy Marketing Group
Learn more about Platinum One Destinations