There’s a story about an experienced mountain climber who trips, falls, and is clinging precariously to the side of a ledge.
“Help me, God,” she cries.
Suddenly she hears a voice.
“I’ll help you Sadie, but first you must do one thing,”
“I’ll do anything,” she says.
And the voice replies, “You gotta’ let go of the ledge.”
In work, as in life, there are only 2 games you can play.
I call the first game the Underearners Game or Not to Lose Game. The second game is the High Earners Game or To Win Game.
Underearners play the Not to Lose Game, which means focusing on playing it safe, looking good and staying comfortable, avoiding anything that could possibly be scary, awkward, embarrassing or (gasp!) lead to failure.
High Earners play the To Win Game by going as far as they can with all that they’ve got. And when they fall, they get back up and keep going. Which means, despite their fear, they keep playing full out.
Which one are you playing? (Be honest, now!)
I want to share the inspiring tale of a woman (I’ll call her Jane) who discovered the stunning power of women joining with other women to take their financial lives higher.
I’ve never met Jane. But recently, she emailed me to say a good friend started an Overcoming Underearning® Book Club, that she joined. The club of five women meet monthly, at 7:30 am for what they dubbed, “OU Power Breakfasts.”
They read a different financial book each month. I am proud to report the first was mine — Overcoming Underearning®. Next was On My Own Two Feet: A Modern Girl’s Guide to Personal Finance by Manisha Thakor and Sharon Kedar.
According to success guru, Jack Canfield, “Everything you want also wants you. But you have to take action to get it.”
I thought of that quote when a woman, in one of my groups, recently posted: “Even though I say I want to create wealth, I keep signing up for more courses that kept putting me deeper in debt.”
I hear this all the time. Taking endless classes feels like you’re taking action, but it’s actually an act of self-deception. So, I responded with a question: Why don’t you want wealth?
I’m often asked this question: I want to become wealthy, but how do I do it?
I am tempted to respond with a line from Hope for the Flowers by Trina Paulus:
“How does one become a butterfly?” she asked pensively.
“You must want to fly so much that you are willing to give up being a caterpillar.”
In other words, you must want to soar so much, that you’re willing to give up playing small and staying safe.
Monday, August 26th we celebrated National Women’s Equality Day recognizing the passage of the 19th amendment in 1920 which gave women the right to vote.
Honestly, I know I should be celebrating this victory. But I’m having a hard time getting in the mood.
Hey, don’t get me wrong. I’m beyond grateful to those gutsy, courageous suffragettes.
But recently I listened to a Ted Talk by one of my favorite actresses, read a WSJ profile of an acclaimed microbiologist and coached a high-level executive…all of whom wearily spoke of their struggles with sexism.
Clearly full equality is far from won. The Equal Rights Amendment, proposed in 1923, has yet to be ratified. Face it, we can’t rely on the government to level the playing field for us.
If we want a seat at the table, it’s our job to take it. We can start by becoming the change we want to see in the world.
Call it a grassroots effort, a personal challenge. What if we each celebrate National Women’s Equality Day by taking on this challenge with the same ferocity and fortitude demonstrated by the suffragettes?
How? Here are a few simple suggestions. And, while they may be simple, they take tremendous courage and commitment.
I truly believe, when enough women see themselves as worthy, capable, powerful individuals, there will be a notable transformation in the national landscape.
Perhaps then we’ll be celebrating National Equality Day for All.
Will you join me? Leave me a comment below.
I recently told my team, “I really need to slow down.” I’d been having a series of health problems, and it felt like my body was telling me to ease up, stop working so hard. Nothing in me wanted to listen.
I just couldn’t figure out what my problem was. Then I recalled a lesson I learned from my daughter, an organic farmer
Over 10 years ago, in a rush of adrenalin brought on by a surge of ambition, I suddenly shifted into high gear. I hired a team, restructured my website, created a new marketing campaign, purchased complicated new software, and created all sorts of new products. I was driven.
I don’t know about you, but these past months have cast a dark pall over my positive attitude. I’ve been feeling fragile, fearful, unsettled.
Finally, it dawned on me—somehow, I needed to get quiet enough and surrender in stillness to receive guidance from a higher wisdom.
Almost immediately, a lesson from A Course in Miracles came to mind—You can see peace instead of this.
I had a huge surprise when interviewing high earners for my book, Secrets of Six-Figure Women.
I expected these women to be extremely confident. And they were indeed.
What I never expected was how many of these “confident” women actually felt like a fraud and were terrified others would find out.
Their level of fear was astonishing. But their courage was inspiring. In fact, after one of those interviews, I grabbed a blank piece of paper and wrote, in red crayon: “Do What You Fear. That’s How You Succeed.” I framed it and put it on a table across from my desk where it still stands today. 
A friend, after several difficult setbacks followed by an extended period of self-improvement, finally came to a profound realization.
“My primary business in my life is taking care of me!” she declared.
That statement may, on the surface, sound appallingly selfish. But in truth, it’s admirable and wise.
You can never fully help another until you first take care of yourself.
Even if you have young kids, elderly parents, or an overgrown garden depending on you, you must put your oxygen mask on first to be in any condition to take care of them.
