PROSPERITY AND READING AND PASSION

I recently read one of my stories in Chicken Soup For The Prisoner's Soul called The Great Escape. It starts out, "I have escaped from prison more times than I can count, thanks to my passion for reading books." I was surprised the title alone didn't bring me unwanted attention from prison authorities when I mailed it out (all prison mail has to be dropped in the mailbox unsealed, so spot checks are part of the process).

I've always believed that what largely separates people from all classes and walks of life is whether or not they are readers. Of both fiction and nonfiction.

I've always winced when a fellow speaker or workshop leader would say to me,

"Oh I read a lot of books, and they're all about business, motivation, and self-help." When I ask if they ever sit down with a novel, they back away as if I suggested they spend their time in some totally frivolous pursuit. But while self-help books offer some useful instructions for life, novels are life.

They reflect, no matter how imaginary their content, the perspectives of an observant life led by the author. And I firmly believe people who read novels are more interesting than people who don't. And more interesting people attract more success in life, a richer, fuller existence.

I wrote in that Chicken Soup piece, "Through the magic provided by books, I no longer have to lay on my narrow bunk with severe restrictions on my movement or schedule. Instead, I can fly to the Middle East on a secret peace mission for my government, walk along the hills and valleys of eighteenth-century New England, or fall in love and raise a family in Paris. Books have always been my passport to enrich both my mind and spirit, but now they are essential to my emotional survival. Any book can lift me out of my confined existence. The best ones are those where I vanish into the pages, moved by the author's language and imagination."

When was the last time you vanished into some pages? I ended up reading over 1000 books during 12 years of incarceration. And I have to give a lot of credit to that fact for the heightened creativity, focus, productivity I've been enjoying since my release. At least 80% of that were novels.

And I've noticed an interesting phenomenon that I've never seen discussed before. Most novels are not about someone achieving financial success, they are about richer things than that with material gain merely a sidebar. They reflect my fuller definition of prosperity as about much more than money, about love and creative satisfaction, and friendship, and an interesting and adventurous life well-lived. I think they have it right.

If you haven't done so recently, pick up a book and have your own great escape.

Jerry

In terms of nonfiction books, I just recently listed the five I would most like to see updated by their authors, now all deceased, on my prosperity-focused blog, www.MoneyloveBlog.com You can also access the opt-in link to download free my new book, The Moneylove Manifesto.

THE PROSPEROUS POWER OF INTENTION

This is about the biggest secret in the universe. Despite the huge readership of Napoleon Hill's Think And Grow Rich, which in its very title revealed that secret, despite the huge viewership of the film The Secret, despite my talking for over thirty years about this concept of enrolling your subconscious mind as your primary ally--despite all of this, most people have not gotten it yet. Perhaps it's an evolutionary process and most people just aren't ready yet.

On the other hand, perhaps we're all ready and just haven't believed it enough to put it into action. It's all about The Power of Intention. What do you intend for yourself--this must come before you start attracting what you want. I remember a psychologist many years ago, whose name is long forgotten though his important message is not, saying that nothing is more vital that what you intend for yourself. Do you intend to fail or do you intend to succeed? Do you intend for next year to be the same as this year or better? The one comment I think is most impressive about someone you admire is, "She certainly has made the most of her life."

Have you made the most of your life? Whatever your situation, can you honestly say you have gotten to where you intended to get?

And here I'll reveal to you one of my big secrets for being happy most of the time. It's pretty simple. It's loving your mind. Not just paying lip service when you hear how powerful your mind and subconscious are, but truly loving them for their awesome power, their faithful obedience to your every desire.

I have always loved the way my mind works, the magical thoughts and ideas it comes up with the delight and often surprise me. It's one of the reasons I've always avoid mind-altering substances. While I don't judge others for what they tend to do, I have always felt that taking drugs is like tossing a rotting pile of garbage on someone you love. And I don't drink alcohol, smoke, or even drink coffee for the same reason. I suggest to you that if you love your mind, you will also avoid these substances. Left to its own natural devices, your mind will give you everything you want. And the first step is your intention.

Jerry

EVERYTHING ELSE

This blog is now about everything else in my life--everything other than prosperity, success, and my Moneylove projects. For that abundance stuff, my new blog is available at:

http://moneyloveblog.com/

Of course, everything in my life is really about prosperity, especially when you accept that prosperity is about much more than money--it's about health, and creative joy, and love, and all the good things one could hope and dream about.

And it's all very connected. For instance, in my new book, The Moneylove Manifesto, available for you to download free at: http://moneyloveblog.com/manifesto/,

I mention Maggie Steincrohn Davis, who was my relationship partner during the period I was creating Moneylove, and with whom I spent two years traveling around the U.S. and Canada in our customized motorhome. We both felt it was silly to wait until we were at retirement age to enjoy that lifestyle. It was an amazing adventure--for awhile it almost looked like it would be made into a movie starring Meg Ryan, but that's a whole other story. Maggie has remained a nurturing, supportive friend all these years. She's an amazing woman, as you can see when you check out:

http://heartsongbooks.com/bio.html

Anyway, in an email exchange just yesterday, she sent me a quote from her book, Caring In

Remembered Ways, which had a line I just fell in love with. See if you can guess which line:

Caring in remembered ways is caring in ways the heart knows and the world longs for. It is being all we are for the sake of all of us, moving beyond courtesy and kindness and empathy to the living compassion—the fruit of seeing deeply—that enlivens all the rest.

No lights swirled while I was writing. I heard no voices. I saw no spirits. My guide was my own knowing. Many years I've spent recognizing my own knowing. More years I've spent trying to live it, first for my good, mostly—now, for greater good.

I confess I could have condensed this book into one sentence. See deeply the beauty and interconnectedness of all life; then think, speak and act from what you see. This understanding is the touchstone I hold my choices to and the ideal I grow toward. My lifework is to embody this understanding, planting seeds of it wherever I go.

I dedicate Caring in Remembered Ways to healing professionals and volunteers—all caregivers, in whatever setting—who long to be more present and tender. I dedicate it to parents and teachers who wish to be better role models for children, to all people young and older—well or in pain, joyful or sorrowing—who, regardless of world (or personal) predicament, aspire to live purposeful, nurturing lives. I dedicate it to creatures of air and earth and water all around.

Ways of being as well as ways of caring weave throughout the words I've written here. Surely, no one can say where being ends and caring begins. Who we are colors all we do and give.

As you read on, I hope you feel we are sitting together—you who hold my book in your hands and I, who have put myself into its pages. Perhaps you will be reminded of your own growing and caring times and of all you might have written here, as well. The practical mercies, revelations, stories, personal accounts, challenges, and ponderings that follow are echoes of the wisdom living deep in every heart.

It was the line in the above paragraph: "I hope you feel we are sitting together--you who hold my book in your hands and I, who have put myself into its pages." What a great image for the connection between writer and reader. And it is exactly what I tried to achieve with The Moneylove Manifesto and will try even more so to create in the upcoming revised and annotated edition of the original Moneylove. And on both my blogs as well. Thank you for sitting with me for this one.

Jerry

Prosperity Blog -- MoneloveBlog.com

Just a short one this time, to announce my brand new focused-on-Moneylove-and-Prosperity blog.

http://moneyloveblog.com/

The first post is published and eventually I will select some of the best prosperity and abundance related posts from this blog to transfer to that one.

Also just published is my e-book, The Moneylove Manifesto, which you can download free.

It's 39 pages packed with prosperity strategies, and the most revealing autobiographic appendix that has the shocking story of my disappearance for 12 years, and lots of other goodies. This is an advance scouting expedition to scope out the territory for the impending updated, revised, annotated edition of Moneylove, which will be the most innovative book on the subject since the original Moneylove and Think And Grow Rich. Check out the manifesto

and you'll see what I mean. You can do that on the new blog, or just click on this link to bring up the opt-in page:

http://moneyloveblog.com/manifesto/

An amazing week, and there's even more--perhaps the most insightful, power and prosperity

focused interview I've ever done, with my brilliant British colleague Barry Dunlop:

http://www.incomediary.com/jerry-gillies-interview-beyond-the-law-of-attraction-money-momentum-magic-and-manifestation/

So you can see why it's been such a big week for me. I want to thank all of you who have been regular visitors to this blog. It will continue with some fun subjects, some personal stuff, some more information on the health benefits of dark chocolate, as that book is still in progress, but my thoughts on success, prosperity, the law of attraction and beyond, and information that may eventually make it into the new revised Moneylove will all be found on the new blog.

May every aspect of your life prosper and flow,

Jerry

MONEYLOVE FOR THE 21ST CENTURY

I am finding life immensely exciting nowadays. First of all, The Moneylove Manifesto, a

sort of precursor to the new, revised edition of Moneylove that will be published as a series of e-books in less than ninety days, is ready. It has been illustrated, formatted, and is ready to

be introduced. The first public unveiling is on Michael Dunlop's website, which published a

teaser this past week. Check out the WHAT'S TO COME section at the bottom of the page--and if

you explore a bit, there's lots of valuable free information on this site.

http://www.incomediary.com/young-entrepreneur-in-cyprus-the-moneylove-manifesto/

Tomorrow, I record a podcast with Barry Dunlop that will also be available shortly on

Michael's website, and you will be able to order a free gift copy of The Moneylove Manifesto at that time.

I am carefully going over the original Moneylove, as I want to keep as much of that intact as possible in the new annotated, revised, updated edition. I will be commenting on the original concepts, offering my discoveries of new ideas and strategies connected with this approach to prosperity consciousness. The new edition will be at least twice as long as the original, as I will expand it in view of the way the world has changed in the decades since its original publication--and particularly the way things have changed for all of us because of the Internet and the instant access we have to everybody and everything on the planet.

As I go through the book, I am highlighting those parts I want to write more about. One

sentence I found in the Introduction caught my attention:

"Wealth is attracted to the person who is emotionally and intellectually ready to accept it, expect it, and enjoy it."

The concept is still true, but I would change it to read "Prosperity" instead of "Wealth."

Wealth is the accumulation of assets that can be converted into money. Prosperity has a wider meaning, and I include in that all the good things we humans aspire to: great health,

good friends, interesting and satisfying work, inner peace, love, a sense of accomplishment, recognition and applause, plus enough money to do what we want with our lives.

I like one dictionary definition of prosperity a lot:

an auspicious state resulting from favorable outcomes

"Hey Jerry--what are you trying to accomplish in your life?"

"That's an easy one to answer, I'm trying to accomplish an auspicious state resulting from favorable outcomes."

That original sentence from Moneylove is also a bit contradicted by one I have in

The Moneylove Manifesto:

Right now, there are people who are a lot dumber

and less talented than you who are

making a lot more money than you.

And it isn't that I've changed on this subject, but that times have changed. Since I wrote the original sentence, the population of millionaires has grown exponentially, geometrically. There have been so many more opportunities to create fortunes since the explosion of the computer age and birth of the Internet. Not that there weren't pretty stupid millionaires then,

just that there are so many more of them now, and they are so much more visible. Off the top of my head, I can name ten celebrities and ten top athletes whose combined intellect is less

than that of a newborn Bonobo ape. But I think it's great that their non-intellectual talents have let them to great success in life. It should be an inspiration to all the rest of us.

For example, I doubt if any one of the twenty above mentioned rich and famous folks could even find their way to this blog. So congratulations, you have already accomplished more than at least twenty millionaires!

Jerry

And by the way, do send me a request if you want to be one of the first to receive a download of the strategy-packed thirty-nine page edition of The Moneylove Manifesto.

ARE YOU A YES-YES PERSON?

Today's topic came to me from several widely divergent directions, all seeming to pop into my life serendipitously and synergistically. It started with an article I read in the San Francisco Chronicle on Sunday, July 5. It was about Peter Pitofsky, a professional clown who teaches that art. He says,

"Being a clown is about ignoring the No-No part of yourself, and listening to the Yes-Yes part. You should be like a 5-year-old in the sandbox having fun. No judgement."

I was reminded of the old song, "Your Lips Tell Me No-No, But There's

Yes-Yes In Your Eyes," first recorded by Paul Whiteman in 1924, and later

by Dean Martin, Frank Sinatra, and many others. And I was also reminded of one of my all-time favorite quotes by the last part of Pitofsky's comment. From Thomas H. Huxley:

"Sit down before fact like a little child, and be prepared to give up every preconceived notion. Follow humbly wherever and to whatever abysses nature leads, or you shall learn nothing."

I had this in calligraphy on my wall for many years, though the version I had didn't have "and to whatever abysses.." I later found out the famed

nineteenth century scientist and philosopher made this point in a letter to a clergyman about the conflicts between science and religion. And there was what I think is an important additional sentence in that letter:

"I have only begun to learn contentment and peace of mind since I have resolved at all risks to do this."

Quite recently, I sent the first draft of my about-to-be published online book, The Moneylove Manifesto to Rupa Cousins, one of the most beautiful (inside and out) women I have ever known. In this e-book, I talk about some specific action-oriented prosperity strategies, including one I introduced in seminars some years ago, The Compliment Bulletin Board. The idea is that whenever someone pays you a compliment that really feels good, you ask them to put it in writing and sign it. You then post it on your Compliment Bulletin Board. Well, Rupa sent me a compliment for my board:

Jerry Gillies, you changed my life. From an unemployed actress in a “no” saying world and in an abusive relationship, in the late 1970’s, you Jerry, took me by the hand and heart and brought me into a new way of life, a life that has been defined by “yes.” Yes to a completely new work as therapist, teacher, healer and workshop leader. Yes, to living an integrated life honoring mind, body, heart and spirit and Yes to becoming a mentor to many who have come into my orbit. And it is with delight and joy that I remain your close friend through the years and forever!

To find out more about Rupa, check out www.rupacousins.com

In case you're wondering about my reaction to this compliment, let's just say you may have noticed me walking funny, as my toes are curled up in pleasure.

And all of this leads me to realize it can be very useful to decided which you are, a "yes-yes" or a "no-no"

So which is it, on balance? Would someone who knows you call you "Yes-Yes"?

Or do you fall more into the "No-no" category? Your answer may have everything in the world to do with your level of success and satisfaction.

Jerry

And by the way--if you would like your own free copy of The Moneylove Manfesto, just send me a brief request via my email at JerryGillies@gmail.com-- It should be ready to publish and download in a couple of weeks. You can also ask for information about the team of people i am working with to taste and share delicious healthy dark chocolate.

THE MASTER MONEY MINISTER IS GONE

A friend of mine died last Tuesday. Reverend Frederick J. Eikerenkoetter II

was popularly known as Reverend Ike, and at times had audiences on radio and television numbering in the millions. He was provocative, he was controversial, he was certainly flamboyant. But one thing he never was, unlike many of the very visible other evangelists: a hypocrite.

Ike once paid me a big compliment when he introduced me to his church audience as "The white Reverend Ike." An even bigger compliment came when he used Moneylove as the text for his course Prosperity Now. In private, he was a highly intelligent, soft-spoken man. But get him up on that stage and all hell broke loose. He was a showman, he was a master phrasemaker. And he made no apologies for the fact that he liked money and loved being rich, with many houses and luxury cars. He used to say,

"My garages runneth over." Compare this with the sanctimonious preachers who would go on TV and pretend to be poverty-stricken. It's what I most admired about him, even more than his charismatic stage presence, his

ability to tell the truth.

Check out this short interview:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5eTCPhAy2Ss

He also told the truth when he described himself by saying, "I was the first black man in America to preach self-image psychology to the black masses within a church setting."

I spoke at his church, located in an ornately reconstructed movie theatre in the Washington Heights section of New York City, 25 blocks uptown from the movie theatre in Harlem where he began his New York ministry. He was proud of the entrepreneurs among his parishioners, and there were many. They heeded his advice: "The best thing you can do for the poor is not be one of them."

I remember meeting one heavyset black single mother of six who had been on welfare, until she took a class with Reverend Ike. Now she was on her way to being a millionaire herself, having invented and patented a sock-like foot comforter in vivid designs. And there were many other examples of ordinary lower income folk Ike mentored and who went on to financial success and independence. The news media rarely covered these stories. Oh, he skirted the line many times, the IRS and Postal authorities kept an almost permanent investigation of his activities going. But I don't remember any reports that he ever hurt anyone, and there was plenty of evidence that he helped many.

He created a persona that people responded to and got inspired and motivated by. He taught prosperity by unabashed example, and probably had a higher success rate than most prosperity teachers. There will never be another one like him.

Jerry

And by the way, you can still reserve your free preview copy of my

upcoming e-book on prosperity, which will be an appetizer for the

soon-to-be-published-online newly revised and annotated edition of

Moneylove. Just let me know you want to be on the list.

jerrygillies@gmail.com