Author: vickidrobnis

To say that I adore my MasterMind partner Naila would be an understatement.  I’m in awe of how similar we are and how we were brought together through the Master Keys Master Mind Alliance.  A MasterMind partner is someone who will hold you accountable and tell you things you need to hear, even if you don’t want to hear them.  That person also holds a vision of your vision to help add energy and focus to it.

So why did Naila tell me I had a big but?  Well, she didn’t mean physically, thankfully!    Today was one of those rough days where so much cement was sloughing off, yet I kept putting it back on.  How was I doing that?  By saying the word “but” with every positive statement I said.  “I’m doing the right stuff, but nothing’s happening.” “I’m supposed to be the leader, but I feel like such an impostor.” “I want to reach this goal, but I’m afraid I won’t make it by the deadline I set for myself.”  You get the picture…

Naila asked could she point out something to me, and once I agreed, she said she had been counting the “buts” I’d been saying and had counted 6 in the past few minutes.  And here I was thinking that “uhs” were annoying.  Those “buts” are even more annoying.

Argue for your limitations and they’re yours.  It’s like two steps forward and one step back.  There’s forward motion, but it’s tiny.  So now I am aware of how many “buts” I use in my daily language speaking, and probably countless more in my head thinking.  If y’all catch me saying “but”, you have my permission to point it out to me as I’m rewriting my blueprint.

Speaking of permission, that was a word Mark used in Sunday’s webinar that grabbed my attention.  How often do we not give ourselves permission to do what we really want?  As one of the GRITS (Girls Raised In The South), I was a diligent rule follower.  I obey the speed limit.  I don’t stray often out of the box.  I did what my teachers asked of me.  Even this week as I slipped up on one of my daily MKMMA activities (my first), I sobbed because of the guilt of not following things exactly as I was supposed to.  Perfectionist much?  Why am I so hard on myself?  I have no problem granting grace to others…why can I not grant it to myself?

So this week, I gave myself permission in several ways.  On a morning where I still felt tired when my alarm went off and I didn’t have to be anywhere specific (thank you, snow days!), I verbally gave myself permission to sleep another hour and the day went so much better than if I’d pushed through without additional rest.  I gave myself permission to be successful and happy.  And I found recordings and videos that brought forth those feelings for me.  I gave myself permission to be myself.  What does that mean?  Well, I’m still discovering that, but (it almost slipped through!) and I give myself permission to take the journey and be raw, open, and vulnerable about what that looks like (future blog coming!).

We’re adults now!  We can give ourselves permission to live beyond the labels that were put on us or we adopted unknowingly.  To move forward toward that vision we want our lives to become.  In fact, we’re the ONLY ones who can give ourselves that permission.  No one else can.

So if you’re a chronic rule follower like I have been, give yourself permission to do whatever you dream!  It’s possible!

This week has been one of the most amazing weeks I’ve ever been through!

Kindness

Kindness is everywhere if you look for it.  It’s even better when you create it.  It’s been absolutely wonderful to see all the kindness examples in the Alliances!  As of publishing time today, we’re up to 6,231 acts of kindness and compliments on those acts.  That’s incredible from about 300 or so people!  And that doesn’t count the many that have been shared on Facebook and other social media platforms.

There really aren’t words for the joy I feel in my heart for seeing these kindnesses being performed and witnessed by our Master Key members!  Not that I was grinchy, but I kinda feel like my heart grew like the Grinch’s did!

Law of Relaxation

The 7 Laws of the Mind continue to reveal themselves to me in super cool ways.  This week, I was running behind for a meeting with one of my team members.  There was no way I was going to be on time.  My appointment was at 10am and it was 9:46 and I was 20 minutes away.  In the past, I would’ve rushed and also texted apologizing that I would be late.  But something told me to just relax.  I was listening to The Strangest Secret in the World and chose to relax and trust all was well.  As I turn on to Main Street, there’s a parking space right in front of the coffee shop where I’m to meet her.  (WIN!) I get out of the car and grab my stuff, pausing to look at my watch…9:59am.  I had made it with a minute to spare.  I’m sure people wondered why I burst into laughter standing beside my car on Main Street, but who cares!  I’ve taken that lesson with me all week long.  When I begin to worry about something, I trust that it’s all happening in the perfect timing.  It’s the first time one of my BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals) has felt achievable even though it’s a big one.  I now KNOW it’s unfolding in the perfect timing in the perfect way with the perfect experiences along the way.

So if you’re reading this thinking about joining in the Master Key MasterMind Alliance program for 2018-2019 or beyond…DO IT!  You’ll love the person you become along the way!

15-3. Difficulties, inharmonies, and obstacles, indicate that we are either refusing to give out what we no longer need, or refusing to accept what we require. 

15-5. We cannot obtain what we lack if we tenaciously cling to what we have. 

15-6. Nothing may reach us except what is necessary for our growth. 

15-7. All conditions and experiences that come to us do so for our benefit. 

15-8. We gain permanent strength exactly to the extent of the effort required to overcome difficulties. 

15-13. It is evident, therefore, that if we wish desirable conditions, we can afford to entertain only desirable thoughts. 

15-29. We can get only what we give; if we pledge ourselves to a certain action we must be prepared to assume the responsibility for the development of that action.

15-32. Insight enables us to be prepared for the obstacles which we shall meet; we can therefore overcome them before they have any opportunity of causing difficulty. 

These are the passages from Week 15 of the Master Keys that I highlighted.  This new year of 2018 has started out very good,  Yet the old blueprint rears its head every once and awhile to let me know it’s not dead yet.  I wonder why I doubt myself.  I look at the cards I’ve written out, countless examples of things I’ve done that I have been quite successful at.  Why should there be any doubt that I can do anything I want to achieve?  Who am I trying to prove myself worthy to?  The world?  My friends and family?  Myself?  Ah, perhaps that’s it.  By saying I’m worthy, I’m defeating the old blueprint that had me believing I had to prove myself.  That I wasn’t worthy unless I did X, Y, and/or Z.

The experiment shared in Haanel about the wingless aphids who grew wings because the rosebush they had been living on had died is symbolic of the old blueprint.  Do I have to wait until the blueprint is dead to grow my wings and fly?

Perhaps not.

The Observer

Over the past week and a half, I’ve been much more the observer of my life.  We spent time with my in-laws, and it was quite interesting to watch the play of emotions and drama that usually arises.  In a way, it was quite fun to watch everyone’s blueprint being played out.  This was the first holiday in quite awhile where I wasn’t sad that I wasn’t spending time with my kids.  I mean, I was sad, but I wasn’t devastated.  It ended up being quite a peaceful holiday.

Again, I did miss not having our usual Sunday MKE webinar. The video with week 14 materials was wonderful and I guess that’ll make up for not having it! LOL!

More cement continues to fall off.  I’m wondering about changing a PPN yet again.  I went from Liberty to Legacy and now I’m pondering Legacy to Freedom.  I know they’re all interconnected with each other and that when I have Legacy, I also have Freedom.  I know Mark would say to simply choose one, but I like to mull things over a bit.  True Health is definitely one PPN…I didn’t even have to think about that one.  Mulling over whether choosing freedom is the lazy way out of going big or is it truly what I want.  Am I settling or do I really not need Legacy?

One of the biggest blessings of this whole experience is connecting with those who want to delve into the mindset and discuss the deeper questions and meanings.  My MasterMind partner is one of those people, and we have been known to get so involved in our discussions that we suddenly realize it’s been 2 hours!  Even though they go over our allotted time, they feed me in a deep and meaningful way.  Is that the freedom I’m seeking?

Week 14’s Master Key reading has also brought forth deeper thoughts, especially paragraph 23 about the power of prayer.  I was raised Episcopalian and was a steady churchgoer for many years.  I fell away for a few years in my first marriage until the children were born.  Then I got involved again at an especially loving and caring congregation.  They helped see me through my difficult divorce and getting started on my own.  Later when I met my husband, who was raised Jewish, he came with me to a few services.  But then he asked me questions about my beliefs.  And I realized I couldn’t explain them beyond what I was taught in preparation for confirmation (like a catechism).  I began to feel inauthentic attending and soon stopped.  I didn’t attend another church until about 3 years ago when I found a Religious Science congregation.  I loved going there and what I was learning, but it was 50 miles one way and that soon got old.  Plus I realized that I couldn’t explain those beliefs to my Southern Baptist daughter and her seminary-attending husband, and it wasn’t long before I left that congregation.

As I write this, I’m observing the thoughts in my head.  Why do I leave what I can’t explain?  Do I have to know everything?  More questions to ponder.

Is that part of this Master Key process?  To question?  To delve deeper to find the meaning?

Two words that are speaking to me right now are Trust and Contentment.  What if I trust that the Universe wants to see me succeed.  Is that the universal power that I’m tapping into through my subconscious?  If I dwell in the Now, do things relax?  Become easier?  Release resistance?  Stop over-analyzing?

I don’t have the answers right now.  And for once, that’s OK.  And that of itself is a miracle.

Week 13 – halfway through the Master Key Experience.  How is that even possible?  It’s kinda like 2017 – it flew by!  I was reading an article a friend shared with me that when you are ascending into a higher vibration, time either sllloooooooowwwwwssss down or speeds up.  It’s definitely sped up for me!

As usual, this has been a week of a-ha moments.  I’m eternally grateful for my MasterMind partner Naila for her encouragement and support as I faced an incredibly tough Tuesday.  It was one of those days when nothing seemed to go right and sobs just wracked my body.  My mind “knew” it was a form of detoxing the old emotions and thoughts, but my body thought I was going crazy!  Naila smartly reminded me to concentrate on the 7 Laws of the Mind and to find something that made me happy and focus on that.  I have a portable infrared sauna (love that thing!) and I usually either listen to a meditation or my affirmations while I’m heating up.  This time I found a YouTube playlist of Partridge Family songs.  Yeah, interesting choice! LOL!  But listening to songs from my childhood with adult ears and thinking metaphorically, the songs had incredible new meaning.   I still remembered all of the words…more proof that the subbie remembers EVERYTHING! Plus Naila pointed out that I was dropping off more cement by getting back to a time when I was carefree and felt such joy and love (thanks, my friend!).

I Woke Up in Love This Morning

Last night, I turned out the light,
lay down and thought about you.
I tho’t about the way that it could be.
Two o’clock, wond’rin’ what I’m doin’ here alone without you.
So, I close my eyes and dream you here to me.

And I woke up in love this mornin’.
I woke up in love this mornin’.
Went to sleep with you on my mind.
I woke up in love this mornin’.
I woke up in love this mornin’.
Went to sleep with you on my mind.

Now as I’m listening to this, my mind is thinking metaphorically about the “you” being my future self. And dreaming of bringing my future self to the present.  Going to sleep with my future self on my mind, especially after reading my Press Release each evening.  Maybe it’s a stretch, but that’s immediately what popped in my head.

Then later in the song rotation, this one pops up…

It’s All In Your Mind

You can be what you feel; life is a ferris wheel, come take a ride
It’s on the inside where you will find it’s all in your mind

Listen, listen
You take a friend of mine, he was sad all the time then he got smart
He opened his mind, and it helped him to find it’s all in your mind
It’s all in your mind, it’s all in your mind

Listen, listen
It doesn’t matter at all who you are or what you need
Just take a look inside, I’m sure you’ll find it’s there in your mind
Baby, it’s all in your mind, baby, it’s all in your mind

Who needs money in a land of milk and honey?
I’ll tell you one more time
You’ll find it in your mind
Baby, it’s all in your mind
Listen, listen 

You can be what you feel

Life isn’t really real

It’s up or down

Get your feet on the ground and maybe 

You’ll find it’s all in your mind

 

Who knew the Partridge Family was singing about having a positive mindset while I was listening to them about 45 years ago? LOL!

Another a-ha this week was remembering something that happened with my daughter when she was in 4th grade.  She was in an advanced math class and was beginning to struggle.  I asked her teacher if the material was too difficult for her.  She said, “No, it’s just the first time that something hasn’t come easily to her and she’s having to work at it.”  Some of the things we’ve been doing with the Master Keys haven’t come easy to me and I realized that much of my life has come easily.  When I look over my index cards about my accomplishments, I remember a few of them being tough to do, but most of them really were easy.  Maybe that’s me looking back after having accomplished them, but I really don’t remember them being difficult.  Is that perspective or just that this is something, like my daughter’s math class, that is challenging my brain in ways it never has before?  Still mulling over that one.

Well, I’m off to go spend some time with my family over the holiday weekend.  My in-laws are coming to town and we’ll do lots of the touristy things in Nashville they love to do.  I’ll be wearing my compass, saying my mantra (I am whole, perfect, strong, powerful, loving, harmonious, and happy!) and I intend to have an absolutely fabulous time!

Happy Holidays to all!

 

It’s really cool when someone who knows you well but hasn’t seen you in awhile notices that you’ve changed…in a good way.

Last week I went back to my hometown to visit my mom.  My mom and I haven’t always gotten along, like I wrote about last week, but this visit was so smooth, it was a bit surreal at first.  There were a few tense first moments since it had been a couple of years since I had been home for a visit, but then we connected and talked in a way we haven’t done in a looooonnnngggg time.  We had so much fun discussing the things I was learning though the Master Keys that it was a bit challenging to stay consistent with my reading and cards, but I did.  The coolest part of the weekend was Saturday morning.  Let me set the stage…

My father passed away in 1996 due to complications after a brain hemorrhage the year before.  1995-96 was a tough year as it’s also the year I divorced my ex and moved out on my own with my two children.  My mother and I were sitting at the dining room table discussing that year.  Suddenly my mom said that she wondered if there was something she could’ve done or said to have kept Daddy from dying.  She said that it had been on her mind for the past 21 years.  After a few questions from me to clarify what she was feeling and assuring her, I asked if she felt she could forgive herself for this burden she had carried for all these years.  Sobs erupted from her.  She wasn’t sure she could.  I told her about the forgiveness exercise Mark had done with us in Week 7 and asked if she’d like to do it with me.  She agreed and I found the replay on my phone and we sat together and listened as Mark’s voice spoke of clearing the channel and forgiving others as well as ourselves.  Tears flowed from both our eyes as we released the thoughts that we hadn’t done enough for my dad.  Shortly after, I had to head out to meet a friend for lunch, but I promised I’d be back by to say goodbye before I went to the airport for my flight home.

When I returned, my mother seemed so much more at ease and peace.  We chatted and hugged and cried some more, treasuring this weekend and not wanting to say goodbye.  It was one of the most healing things I’ve been through.  And it’s all thanks to this MKMMA experience.

On my travels home, my flights were delayed and yet, that didn’t bother me.  I knew it was all going to be ok.  Anytime I felt frustration, I began the affirmation from week 9

and the feeling eased into thankfulness for being where I was at that moment. I arrived at my home airport at the time I was due in despite the delays.  What a great metaphor for simply trusting in the process.

Since then, I’ve had a few conversations with my mom.  Both she and my sister said they noticed how at peace I was during my visit.  There was some calmness there that evidently wasn’t there before.  I think it was because I was more the observer and less eager to share a thought or opinion (still working on that one! LOL!).

Today I received a holiday card from my mother.  In it was a note thanking me for coming for a visit and being so thankful that we had those heart-to-heart conversations over the weekend and that she felt a peace she hadn’t felt in years.  If that was the only gift from the MKMMA experience, every bit of work, reading, money, and tears would be absolutely worth it.

But the beautiful thing is that there have been sooooooo many gifts from this experience.  Every single day I notice something different in me – a new connection with a friend, co-creating this wonderful workshop with a fellow trainer, reaching out to people about my business with no expectations, just sharing a little hope, more fitness flexibility and endurance that wasn’t there a few months ago.

For those of you who may be reading this while considering the MKMMA experience for 2018-2019, JUST DO IT!  You’ll be so glad you did!  I sure am!

Since Sunday’s webinar, there’s something that has stuck in my mind.  It was actually said during the Masterminding part after the webinar.  I wish I could remember who asked the question, but Mark gave a profound answer that has had me thinking for the past 4 days.

So let me set the stage…the initial question had to do with finding the reading from Scroll 3 of The Greatest Salesman in the World more difficult than Scrolls 1 or 2.  She was wondering why this one would seem so difficult.  (BTW, the subject is persistence.)  Mark said because she was highly intelligent that she was overthinking it.  And that the real root of the issue was because she was fearful of becoming “big” (as in reaching her goals) that she was stuck in the minutiae of why this passage was bothering her.  If she persisted, she would manifest her DMP and that scared her.

Our deepest fear…

While I had watched the above clip in Week 7 and had often heard the passage before, for some reason this seemingly matter-of-fact remark hit me in the head like a 2×4.

My mother grew up in a situation where it wasn’t safe to stand out.  I also learned those coping skills.  I’m not blaming my mother at all; it’s what she had to do and she has always done the best she can wherever she is.  But I didn’t grow up in that.  I have some BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals).  By repeating that old blueprint of it not being safe to shine, I’m not showing up for myself.  I’m letting myself down.  I’m also letting others down because of hiding what I have to offer the world.

So how do I get over this?  I persist.  And I win!   I do the hard things.  I take a step forward despite fear of what others think.  I create a new blueprint where it is safe to shine and, in fact, it’s freakin’ incredible to shine!

I promise to take those steps forward each day.  I promise to take those chances that bring me closer to my DMP.  I promise to make the Gal in the Glass proud each night when I look in her eyes in the mirror.

And y’all know, I always keep my promises.

Wow, this has been a week of a-ha moments!

First, I really missed having a webinar on Sunday.  I know I could’ve popped on the coffee chat, but I had made plans to take the weekend OFF to recoup and rest, so I didn’t attend.  Instead I watched a hero journey movie (or rather heroine journey) – Beauty and the Beast (the live action one).  How cool it was to see the hero’s journey being told and to know what it was.  It was also a vivid reminder of how what we see influences our emotions, especially as I sat with tears going down my cheeks at the end of the movie.  A-ha #1

Next, the first page of Part 10 of the Master Key about thinking only in self-defense…OUCH!  Talk about hitting home.  In the past, I have always had an excuse for something.  Traffic…not enough time…something someone said to me that made me mad or sad…the list could go on and on.  I’ve always considered myself a very responsible person, so why did I do that?  In reflecting on this over this week, it occurred to me that I am a perfectionist (well, it’s not the first time that’s occurred to me! LOL!).  If I was doing things perfectly in my mind and I wasn’t getting the results I wanted, well then it must be someone else’s fault.  Very arrogant of me and irresponsible.  After all, it is my response-ability.  The only thing I can control is my response.  A-ha #2

Today began the switch to Scroll 3…do any of my fellow MKMMA-ers feel like Scroll 2 flew by?   I kinda got a preview of Scroll 3 when this magnet fell of the card my hubby gave me back around week 2…

…as in fell off right where my hand was on my desk.  Yes, thank you Universe for making this so clear!  I don’t read ahead in The Greatest Salesman, so I had no idea this month’s theme is persistence.  A-ha #3

I also had a Zoom with my guide Linda about my DMP because I’d been feeling my PPN of Liberty wasn’t feeling so “me” anymore.  True Health was a no-brainer for one PPN.  Anyone who knows me knows I’m totally into health, nutrition, and fitness.  But Liberty wasn’t gelling.  Yes, I want liberty, but I wanted something more.  As we talked (ok, I talked, she listened!), it became very apparent Legacy was what I needed.   As a former high school teacher, nothing thrills my heart more than to hear a former student say that what I taught them made an impact on their lives and that it’s something they carry forward with them in their jobs and/or families.  That’s creating a legacy.  So now my DMP flows better and it feels more like “me”.  A-ha #4

Finally, my MasterMind partner and I had our first Zoom together today.  We’d been communicating through Facebook and What’s App, but had set today as our first Zoom to determine how best to support each other’s DMP.  What happened today was absolutely freakin’ amazing!  We live 6 times zones away from each other, on two separate continents, work with two different network marketing companies, are of two different nationalities, and yet we are so incredibly similar!  As in like scary-similar!  We have both been looking for a way to practice our Go90Grow skills to expand our businesses and teach our teams the skills.  The excitement I feel about what we planned for our next connections simply cannot be put into words!  It’s going to enhance not only each other, but also our teams!  A-ha #5

In September, I didn’t know I was seeking the MKMMA program, but it sure was seeking me!  Ain’t it gorgeous when something is coming together so beautifully?

When you start hitting walls and obstacles, what do you do?  Do you stop?  Try to go around?  Go straight through no matter what?  I was tempted to do all of these this past week.

Thanksgiving week can be challenging for many people.  Mark cautioned us to be prepared as most would be around family members who could trigger the old blueprint.  Well, that wasn’t my case.  We didn’t have a big family celebration, and that was what triggered my old blueprint.  Feeling lonely, left out, forgotten.  Definitely don’t scroll through Facebook seeing everyone else’s family celebrations if you face this.  LOL!  It’ll cause tears.  We haven’t had a family Thanksgiving in years, though we had planned to be with my son and my mom for this year’s except we couldn’t find a pet sitter for our geriatric cats.  I now know to be more prepared for Christmas! 🙂

The passing of David Cassidy this past week was also challenging.  It may sound silly to mourn a childhood crush, but I did.  A friend had shared that it was losing a piece of innocence from our childhoods.  In one of his last interviews, David disclosed he’d had been dealing with dementia like his grandfather and his mother had, and that he knew it was coming for him.  Of course he did…he helped create it.  That somehow made it even sadder to me and made me even more determined to be aware of my thoughts.

Needless to say, the mental diet has been started many times over this week.

This became my go-to phrase over and over and over…

I printed this out and have it posted several places in my home.  A reminder to me and anyone who sees it that we do have the power to create anything we want!

Thinking back to the source…

I freely admit that while I loved the idea of thinking back to the source of something, tracing it all the way back to where it began as a thought, the idea of doing this with a battleship really wasn’t very appealing.  Nothing against the military because I know there has been a necessity for our armed forces, but I don’t like that there is that conflict in the world.  So I did vary this a bit.  Instead of imagining how the ship came to be, I imagined how the servicemen and women came to be there.  I thought back through their training, their families at home, the teachers they’d had, the sports they may have played, the songs they may have sung, being little girls and boys, being born to parents, being the twinkle in the eye of their parents.  Seeing how many influences they had on their lives was truly eye-opening.  What made them want to serve their country in the military?  Was this something they’d always dreamed of or was it a way to pay for college?  Yeah, you can say I’m a people person! 🙂  I also found it fascinating to imagine how the food and clothing for the service people came about.  Tracing the clothing from the manufacturers all the way back to the cotton being grown on a field in Alabama (I’ve driven past lots of cotton fields there!).  Seeing the food grown in various parts of the world and how it got to the ship as sustenance for those sailors.

So what did this little exercise show me?  It’s amazing how all interconnected we are and yet we often feel so alone.  We seem light years away from each other, yet we are affected by what someone does halfway across the world.  How many steps there are in the process to bring something to fruition can be mind-boggling.  So while at first I didn’t like the subject of the exercise, I did find that I enjoyed the exercise itself and it has shown me there’s so much more than simply on the surface.  It, along with Scroll II and the Mental Diet, has made me more tolerant and patient with people.  That’s a good thing!

As part of this week, I gave up TV.  I’d already been moving in that direction, but I was firm in my resolve to not watch TV.  Instead of watching TV, my hubby and I began playing board games, something I have never really enjoyed.  But this week, it became fun.  Before I didn’t like to lose.  I would be so down on myself and feel less than worthy.  Crazy, right?  But this week, while I did lose a couple of games to my hubby, that feeling wasn’t there.  It was very much a feeling of “I never lose; I either win or I learn.”  I didn’t take it personally.  Do y’all know how HUGE that is?  It’s like one of The Four Agreements finally sunk in!

I’m also doing the Go90Grow program of Mark’s and one thing really stood out to me in listening to the Hero’s Journey portion – be decisive.  In the past, that hasn’t been my typical nature.  I didn’t want to offend anyone if I made a choice they weren’t happy with.  So since I listened to that, I’ve become more aware of when I am being indecisive and I tell myself to make a decision.  And you know what?  It’s very freeing!  The combination of saying, “Do It Now!” and being decisive has made me incredibly industrious.  Lots of things are getting done that I would’ve typically left to do later.  Procrastination is no longer a habit.   HALLELUJAH! 

Now I understand when I watched the videos when deciding whether to do the MKMMA why people all said how much it changes your life.  I bid farewell to the old Vicki cause there’s a new Vicki in town!