The Secret Behind The Secret
Wednesday, 10:05 AM
Dear Friend,
I've been on a very important mission the last couple weeks.
I've been searching for my very first "jazz box". (That's what they call those big hollow body electric guitars.)
I've finally narrowed it down to the one I want.
Actually "want" isn't the proper word.
I am literally LUSTING after this guitar.
Once you see her, you'll understand why.
Ain't she a beauty?
Can you see why I'm lusting after her beautiful curves and longing to caress her long gorgeous neck?
She's an Eastman AR803CE-16D with a sunburst finish.
And she will be mine.
Oh, yes… she will be mine.
Hey, here's something I don't think I've ever shared with anybody…
In the past, I half-way bought into the "name it and claim it" teaching some rather flamboyant and wealthy pentecostal preachers were spouting.
I read a lot of "law of attraction" books and kinda half-way believed that stuff, too.
Why only the "half-way" belief?
Well… something in my gut told me it was complete B.S.
But I figured I had nothing to lose… so I did EVERYTHING those books claimed you needed to do to manifest your desires.
Did it for years, too.
Did it work?
Not initially.
It didn't work because…
There was a BIG secret
they deliberately left out!
When I learned that secret, it finally DID work… like gangbusters.
First I'm going to show you how I tried to manifest my desires in the past.
Then I'll share the one big secret I discovered to making all that "woo woo" stuff really work.
First, I would get a picture of what I wanted. I'd put it in a place where I'd see it multiple times a day. Or I'd carry it with me to look at throughout the day.
Second, I would assign a date as to when I was going to have it.
Third, (here's where it gets a little "woo woo") I would make a positive statement to my subconscious several times a day. Something like this:
"I will have an Eastman AR803CE-16D with a sunburst finish by October 31, 2010."
Fourth, if possible, I would find a music store where I could actually see and play the guitar in person.
Fifth, patiently wait for the guitar to magically come to me.
Hey, don't make fun! I said this is how I USED to do it.
What can I say? I was young and gullible when I discovered the law of attraction.
Anyhoo, I tried this a bunch of times… for a lot of different stuff.
In some cases, I kept at it for YEARS.
Guess what…
Nothing ever "manifested" itself.
That is, until I discovered one final step.
In a lot of these law of attraction books they state you should be "willing to do whatever it takes" to accomplish your goal. They claim just being willing is enough.
Here's what I've discovered:
Yes, you have to be willing to do whatever it takes to accomplish your goal.
Then…
Are you ready for this?
You DO it!
They never actually mention that last step, do they?
They don't mention it because if they did, they would immediately lose 95% of their audience.
All that other stuff is important for conditioning your mind for success… but it ain't gonna produce jack squat without action.
By the way, did you know Napoleon Hill, the author of Think And Grow Rich, almost died penniless?
How could the author of the most famous and widely read law of attraction book be broke?
Simple. He believed his own publicity and forgot about the last step.
W. Clement Stone rescued him in his final days by giving him a figure head position at his insurance company to keep Hill from dying broke.
Here's the point:
I have never gained anything worthwhile… and have never "manifested" anything in my entire life by just thought alone.
Yes, I've put in a LOT of thought… and all the positive thinking stuff, too… but without the commitment to do whatever it takes… and then actually DOING it… all that law of attraction stuff is useless.
At least that's how it has always worked out for me.
All the best,
P.S. Now if this guitar shows up on my doorstep tomorrow, I'm gonna look pretty stupid. 
Dan , you are astutely observant – predictably so, for everyone's benefit; great perspective on the BS name it & claim it philosophies out there today.
I don' play guitar myself, but always envied those that had that ability…
That Eastman, she IS a real beauty Dan; I wouldn't be ashamed to own one myself , appreciating the beauty in the hourglass lines of design and the warmth of the sunburst colours. The clarion resonate of the notes.
Here's hoping that Eastman WILL show up on your doorstep, tomorrow if not very soon -then you can serenade each and everyone here.
Dan,
Nice post.
Maybe one should market new TV remote – with a "Manfest" button.
That goes just to the right of the "Pizza" button.
Dan,
This is SOOOO true.
Halbert used to say "Motion beats meditation" didn't he?
So true too …
I HAVE found that if I make up my mind to do something, focus all my energies on it AND take a lot of MASSIVE action towards it (stuff most people would call me crazy for), then things seem to almost "magically" line up in a way that's helpful.
Kind of like the saying, "the harder I work, the luckier I get" …
Great post.
Later!
Caleb
Yes, you would unless Santa brought you a superior Telecaster.
Then you'd have an excuse to go all-tube Fender.
P.S. Now if this guitar shows up on my doorstep tomorrow, I’m gonna look pretty stupid.
Not as stupid as the kid in The Secret who wanted the bicycle.
He sat under a tree with a catalog picture, hope and wished and dreamed for it…
And then auto-magically an old queen pedophile showed up at the kid's door one day with the bike.
IMO he'd have been better to get off his ass and do odd jobs for others or deliver papers or any kind of work, allowing him to save the money to buy the damn bike.
Yep. I've tried telling this to all of those intense "The Secret" fans I meet, with little success. You don't get paid for what you know, you get paid for what you do.
"Nothing happens until something moves” – Robert Ringer
Newton's First Law of Motion: "An object at rest stays at rest, and an object in motion stays in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force."
Also:
TANSTAAFL – "There ain't no such thing as a free lunch"
Luke 6:38
Dan, you are so right about all the “woo woo” stuff.
Everyone seem to want instant gratification without doing anything but manifesting thoughts.
Action must precede action…
The only way to start is start…
Jump right in and GET IT DONE
Sandy Barris
Fast Marketing Plan http://www.FastMarketingPlan.com
I live in a big city and I am fed up with such info too.
I also read a few books on law of attraction, practised them a little but I always hesitated to actually make an action.
Thank you for the eye-opening iinfo.
Hi Dan,
Ya, they leave out the last step.
If not, who would need them and how much money would they make?
The guys that were in, "The Secret" are now making a fortune teaching seminars. Go figure.
They leave out the most important step; ACTION!
Our brains don't create reality, they integrate with reality…meaning you actually have to see what's happening then do something about it to have something. And above all…have fun!
Dan, I've always said that anything worthwhile in my life has only come through intellect and fortitude. Positive intentions are wonderful (knowing your unconscious negative intent even better), but there's nothing I've found about firing up the limbic system which ever actually gets me what I want.
More power to you for bringing this to our attention
And for your guts on the agnostic post the other day too… I recently bought the domain "BigHairyAthiest.com" because I felt that the majority of atheist literature was too angry, and I wanted to write about how to find meaning and purpose in a Godless world. (Rather than engage in endless debates about proof or the lack thereof)
Haven't quite had the guts to take such a polarizing stand in that one market… your post helps!
The only place 'play' comes before is in the dictionary.
That is what I taught my son and the Scouts too.
When did 'work' become a four letter word?
Tim
That was great! I was confused, it seemed un-Dan… you had me going.
@DaveC
Fell out'a my chair laughing at your line – "And then auto-magically an old queen pedophile showed up at the kid's door one day with the bike. " I owe you one for that laugh!!
So true Dan! So many of these S.O.B.'s prey upon good people that find themselves in a weakened state of mind for any number of reasons.
I must admit I fell for a bit of this crap myself! Not actually believing things would come to me I didn't earn or work for, but I found myself chasing false hopes, wandering around in a haze it seemed for well more than a year or so, just a short while back.
There's lots more to it that I won't go into, but stumbling onto your site and the constant -from the heart- motivation and no BS reality you offer here has been a big help.
Matter of fact, I listen to your last recorded call about once a week, and am very glad you never edited any of it out. Something you said really woke me up, pissed me off at myself enough to force the changes helping me make massive progress compared to where I was just a few months ago.
Thanks for that CopyRocker!
B
"An unbalanced force."
I think that's a pretty good label for entrepreneurs. We do have to be somewhat unbalanced to step up and attempt to run our own show. Some more than others.
Napoleon Hill may have been a little cuckoo by the end, but W. Clement Stone was definitely someone worth learning from. His life story and his "Success System That Never Fails" are both chock full of the real secrets to success. I'll give you a hint. He was all about GOYAAKOD.
I happen to like Napoleon Hill…but one thing that always bugged me about him:
Hill claimed he learned "the secret" from Andrew Carnegie…
But how did Andrew Carnegie make his money? Selling information products? Printing books and giving speeches? Positioning himself as a "guru"?
No, Carnegie made his money by building up Carnegie Steel, and then selling it. Notice the action verbs in that sentence I just wrote.
Anyway. Great post Dan!
How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.
It took me a while, but I finally got it: if you want something, first ask yourself why you don't have it yet, and what you need to acquire it. If the thing you need to acquire it is at the moment out of your reach, instead of immediately giving up (like most people do), ask yourself what you need to acquire THAT thing instead, and so on and so on, until you finally find something that is at the moment within your reach. Then start working your way up.
Example: I want a Lamborghini. To get it I need money. I don't have the money. To get the money I need a better job. I have no skills or qualifications that would allow me to get a better job, so go out and search fort them, then look for a better job, then start saving money, then buy the Lambo.
Other example: I want to get laid with hot girls. I can't because I'm unattractive and socially awkward. You can split the ultimate goal into two lesser goals: get fit and get more confident: So go to the gym and workout to become more attractive and improve your confidence. So by working out at the gym and educating myself on how to be more confident (and then APPLYING that knowledge), this goal becomes achievable.
These examples may be a bit lame, but really, almost any grandiose and seemingly impossible goal becomes achievable if you deconstruct it into a number of smaller goals and then start working on them.
Oh man. NEVER buy a guitar without playing it first.
Would you get hitched with a mail order bride?
Sure the photo is HOT.What might sound like an angel
singing to one guy might sound like a squawking chicken to you.
You gotz to put your arms around your honey and see how
she reacts to your tender touch.Who knows,she might be
a fridged Ice Queen and not respond or prefers the Bad Boy
type that treats her rough.
We all know Doberman's are sweet little teddy bears at heart.
I would be mighty happy with an Eastman Mandolin
Dan , you are astutely observant – predictably so, for everyone's benefit; great perspective on the BS name it & claim it philosophies out there today.
I don' play guitar myself, but always envied those that had that ability…
That Eastman, she IS a real beauty Dan; I wouldn't be ashamed to own one myself , appreciating the beauty in the hourglass lines of design and the warmth of the sunburst colours. The clarion resonate of the notes.
Here's hoping that Eastman WILL show up on your doorstep, tomorrow if not very soon -then you can serenade each and everyone here.
I love it! Gerat post and a great point.
Dan,
Sweet guitar. Though I'm a sucker for a clear finish on a hollow body…. I assume we'll hear some recordings using it soon after you get it? Hint, hint…
In reference to Jay's comments: I used to think you always needed to play a guitar before you bought it, but then I bought my Ibanez SR-505 bass off of ebay and couldn't be happier with it. Having said that, a good return policy from the vendor does help prevent you regret if it doesn't turn out to be what you wanted…
And, to quote Dan Kennedy, in reference to your message in this post: YCDBSOYA.
I'm sure you know that reference.
- John
Work left the language about the same time television began telling us we could have anything we wanted. The problem with the glass tit's sales pitch was it failed to inform us it wanted money for the shiny things. Which necessarily requires work. Instead, being the lazy monkeys humans are, we became entranced by the Paris Hiltons of the world, thinking that's the life we wanted. Did you catch the photos of her in court the other day on cocaine charges? I'm thinking the heiress had soiled herself given the look on her face. Money doesn't buy happiness … the deserved fruits of our bust-ass, hard labor does.
It never ceases to amaze me the people who get lost in the woowoo.
You'd think that when The Secret was full swing and at the height of its success the world would have been at its most prosperous – not about to crash headlong into a global depression.
Less of the voodoo and more of the do will keep you out of the doodoo.
"Less of the voodoo and more of the do will keep you out of the doodoo."
That's funny, Dean… and true!
Thanks, Geoff.
I've actually got a little plan in place to GUARANTEE the Eastman will show up on my doorstep. It involves all the steps I detailed above… plus making extra money in a new little kitchen table business to buy it… instead of waiting for "the universe to manifest it."
That's funny, Conrad.
Actually that pizza button doesn't sound bad, though. I'd put the "beer" button right beside it.
Yeah, Caleb. Isn't it amazing that the amount of "luck" you have is dependent on the amount of work you do?
I'd LOVE to have another Tele. I had an early 70's model with two humbuckers when I was a kid. Great guitar. I regret selling it. (I was probably broke and needed the money.)
I also had an early 70's Fender Deluxe Reverb amp. Not as good as a blackface from the 60's, but a great amp nonetheless. Unfortunately, I sold that, too, years ago.
Maybe I'll send vibrations out to the universe so they'll both come back to me.
I literally laughed out loud at this, Dave!
I remember that scene and thought the same thing. Somebody ought to teach this kid how to work, make and save money… instead of teaching him to be a deadbeat.
Yup. It always comes down to the DOING.
I like TANSTAAFL.
Somebody needs to beat that into the heads of the 51% (and growing) population of the US… and all the poiticians that created that segment.
The funny thing is… most of the people who discover the law of attraction and decide to use "manifesting thoughts" can't even do THAT consistently. They try it (without taking any productive action) for a few days, at most, and then give up.
I find it amusing.
My pleasure. I've been wanting to do an article like that for a while.
Somebody successful and credible ought to do a derivative work of "Think & Grow Rich" and "Psycho-Cybernetics" adding the left out secret… ACTION!
It all seems to come down to that bad word nobody likes… W-O-R-K, doesn't it, Medreth?
That's good, David. I never looked at it that way… INTEGRATING with reality.
Hey Glenn… nice to have you here.
I've had that article floating around in my head since I saw "The Secret". I'm glad I finally committed it to writing.
About that agnostic post… I expected a lot more blow-back from the super spiritual people. I didn't want to offend anybody but I have several friends who have been crippled by fear and inaction for DECADES. And the excuse that always makes them feel better about their bad choices is the promise for a better eternal life… something that NOBODY knows for sure if it exists.
Frankly, I just think it's a stupid excuse for bad life choices and I was finished letting them off the hook with that one.
Yeah, really. From my father's generation up to the present, people have been trained to regard work as a BAD thing.
I honestly believe ALL work is good. Even if it's not your dream job… if you've got the balls you can use it as a stepping stone to your dream job and a better life.
Unfortunately, nobody taught me that when I was young.
You thought I was going all "woo woo" on you, didn't you?
Hi Barry,
I remember shortly after graduating from high school and getting booted out on my own being scared to death… not having any plans for the future and no skills to make any decent plans.
I bought "The Magic Of Thinking Big" and used to lie in my bed in the room I rented from a friend's family and visualize myself winning the lottery. THAT was my future plan!
Hey, I didn't know any better. I probably would have better odds visualizing myself as a 6'9" pro basketball player. (I'm 5'6".) The odds of THAT happening were better than winning the lottery.
I'm glad you liked that last teleseminar. I did it because I felt like its time had come.
I think that's one I don't have in my library. I'll have to check that out.
Thanks, Dan
BTW, you can always trust a guy named Dan, can't you?
Yup. Carnegie was definitely a GOYAAKOD kinda guy. That got left out of Hill's literature.
Good stuff, Zaldrak.
You forgot this part:
When you DO get the Lamborghini, it will help a LOT with the second goal.
I have a trip to NY scheduled next month. I'm going to stop by Guitars N Jazz to check one out. He has several in stock. They're pretty hard to find around here.
Have you seen the prices on a Gibson ES175 lately, Owen? Wow!
I'm going to try an older one out at a place in NY next month… but I'd be constantly worried to take that thing out in a club. I'm afraid some drunk would knock it over or something. Now, they're more of an investment item.
BTW… interesting website there. That's a cool way of making money. And I'm assuming the topic is one you're interested in, right?
Thanks, Chris.
I thought about just ordering it from Guitars N Jazz in NJ but since I'll be in NYC next month, I'm going to try it out in person. Most dealers now give you a 3 to 7 trial period.
I forgot about that Kennedy quote. I like that. Let's keep it to ourselves so everybody is guessing what it means.
You're right, Marc. People seem more interested in staying glued in front of the idiot box watching their favorite celeb's shenanigans than making something constructive happen in their own lives.
When I bought that Gibson in about 1968 it was $500. Not sure I want to know what they go for now.
Worse, I wonder what an old L5 is going for!
Re: my website. Yes, it's something I'm interested in and it's related to the online business I've had for 8 years. I've been in the business of selling high-quality saw blades and thought, what the heck, might as well sell the saws too. Besides, linking to the new site from my aged, highly ranked site, can't hurt.
Oh wow! I'd LOVE to have a '68 ES175.
Check this out, Owen. Here are the prices for various years of that model:
Vintage Prices For 2008 :
1949 – 1951 > $4500 to $5500 ( p90 pickups)
1952 – 1956 > $4000 to $4500
1957 – 1959 > $6000 to $7000 (Humbucker)
1960 – 1964 > $4500 to $6000
1965 – 1966 > $3500 to $4000
1967 – 1969 > $4500 to $6000 ( Black )
1967 – 1971 > $2400 to $3000 ( various colors )
As for the L5, as best as I can tell, depending on the year, it could be worth a minimum of $10k.
If I knew then what I know now I would have invested all my paper route money when I was a kid in guitars made in the 60's. You could still get them cheap back in the 70's.
[...] to Doberman Dan for prompting me to think about this with this post: http://dobermandan.com/the-secret-behind-the-secret/. Check it [...]
Now this one's enough to make a grown man cry. The guitar I had before my Gibson was stolen from a house where my band practiced. You ready? It was an original white Fender Telecaster. I had paid about $100-150 for it, from a buddy who had gotten hold of an original Les Paul Custom. I didn't like the neck on the Les Paul, but it sure had a great tone! The Fender, on the other hand, was easy to play.
Woulda, shoulda, coulda. Buy the Eastman if you like it and NEVER let go of it!
I believe that stealing a man's guitar is like stealing his horse back in the old cowboy days. The thief deserves hanging.
@Dean: You know what's crazy? I recently read that we are in the economic environment that we're experiencing now BECAUSE of what the law of attraction teaches. We have attracted the recession.
Of course, by that logic, European Jews in the 1900s attracted Adolf Hitler.
I'm glad that you had the guts to bring this up, Dan. Whenever I criticize the Secret publicly, adherents attack and skeptics keep quiet. I believe many copywriters and marketers who won't speak out because so many potential clients may not want to work with them.
On LinkedIn, some people actually indicated to me that being a skilled LoA practitioner is a job skill that belongs on a resume!
Remember your recent post when you told the story about la Colombiana deciding at an early age that she'd marry someone with your specific characteristics? Some would say that she attracted you using the universal law of attraction. But you know better. She knew what she wanted, and she went after it with tenacity and persistence.
I have wanted to deal with this subject for a while. Thanks for getting it started, Dan.
[...] P.S. If you're one of MY kind of people and you understand there ain't no such thing as a free lunch… and if there was, it wouldn't be fit to eat… AND you actually want to hear the TRUTH about what it takes to be successful… you might want to see my original post entitled, The Real Secret Behind "The Secret." [...]
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