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RACHAEL O'MEARA: I'm Rachael O'Meara and I'm really excited
today to introduce our guest speaker at
Google, Robert MacPhee.
So a little bit about Robert before we get started.
Robert is a speaker, author, coach, and consultant.
His mission is to help people connect in the world of
constant change.
He is the author of the book "Manifesting for Non-Gurus,"
and we have some of those here for later.
He also has a book and companion journal for it about
how to quickly and easily attract lasting results.
He's the former director of training for Jack Canfield.
Jack, if you've heard of him, he's the co-creator of a book
you may have heard of, "Chicken Soup for the Soul"
and all those books in the series, and also the author of
the book, "The Success Principle." So
he knows his stuff.
He's also a founding member of the Transformational
Leadership Council, a group of the world's leading
authorities in personal and professional development.
So without further ado, please welcome Robert.
[APPLAUSE]
ROBERT MACPHEE: Thank you.
Thank you, everyone.
I am thrilled to be here.
I knew last night I was going to be thrilled to be here, but
I didn't realize how thrilled until I actually
flew in this morning.
I live in San Diego, and I flew in early this morning.
And I realize while I was driving here that you guys
have made my life so easy.
I just really connected, while I was driving in traffic on
the 101, this is my opportunity to give back to
you and maybe make your lives a little bit easier, too.
Because I was jumping off the plane, googling something
about my rental car company, and then I was using my Google
Maps to get from where I needed to be to here.
And you guys just make my life so easy, so I really am
thrilled at the opportunity to share some things today with
you that I think will make your lives easier as well.
Would that be OK?
All right.
So we're going to go through some things
today relatively quickly.
And I want to just set the stage really quickly for how
we're going to do that.
What we're going to do today is going to be focused on
creating results but also on creating the experience of
life that you want to be having.
When I looked at my work and how I could really deliver
something that would be valuable for you, it seems to
me that based on the nature of this company and what's going
on here, and how quickly things are moving, and the
amazing things that are happening here, it's probably
not so much about creating results as it is making sure
the results you're creating are really in alignment with
the experience that you want to be having.
So we're going to focus on both of those.
And as we get started here today, I would just invite you
to kind of put this conversation into context.
To think about your own life, your own work, maybe the team
that you're on, and just think about what kind of new
results, what kind of new experience, do
you want to be creating?
So that you can take what we talk about today and just put
it into that context.
Because my intention is by the end of the day today, or the
end of our hour together today, you'll be in a position
to do some things a little bit differently in order to create
the results you want more quickly, more easily, and to
have those results really be lasting.
So again, one of the things I'm going to focus on today is
the fact that this can affect you personally.
What we're going to go through, what we're going to
talk about today, you could definitely apply it personally
in your own life, in your own position, in your own role.
But it can also affect your team.
So if you're a member of a team, if you're a leader of a
team, I would also invite you to just look at what we're
going to talk about today through that lens, of how can
this help my team?
And then I want to ask your permission on two things.
One-- is it OK if we go fast today?
You guys are fast, right?
That's what this company is all about, is fast, right?
Because I really do have a lot that I want to share with you
in an hour.
So just to let you know, I am going to go quickly.
And the other thing, if it's OK with you, if it's OK-- it's
lunch time.
Can we have a little fun?
Did you notice on that first slide I shared at the bottom,
there was a thing about the YouTube Week.
There's like some humor thing going on this week and it
says, this had better be funny.
So that's kind of the model.
This had better be funny.
One of the things we've learned is that you actually
learn more effectively when things are fun, when there's
laughter and fun involved.
So I told you it's going to be about results and experience.
It's also going to be focused on practical and
implementable.
I want what we share today to be something that you can
literally put into action and put into use right away.
The title of today's presentation is "Mastering the
Art of Living a Purpose Driven Life.
And again, we're going to focus on purpose, but I want
to start with that first word--
mastery.
And by mastery, I mean attracting the results we want
quickly and easily.
You all know the people who do this.
They just make it look easy.
Things happen.
They always have the resources that they need.
Things are easy and effortless for them.
That's the result we're looking for.
I'm going to add one other word in there, which is I want
to help you do this in a way that those results last.
So it's not just a one-shot deal.
So did everyone get two wine corks on your chair?
So I'm going to ask two things.
One, can I have maybe four volunteers who would be
willing to come up to the front of the room with your
wine corks?
And I'm going to ask everyone to set down your things and
stand up with your wine corks.
So can I get four brave volunteers who would be
willing to just come up, two on each side of me?
And I'm going to demonstrate mastery for you.
I'm going to give you all the opportunity.
If you would, just set your stuff down, stand up with your
wine corks.
OK, so we have four brave volunteers.
Let's hear it for our volunteers.
They have no idea how brave they really are right now.
So I'm actually going to pull a chair.
This is probably an OSHA violation, but this'll help
you guys who are further back.
What I'm going to ask them to do--
and you're all going to do this with me--
is you're going to take your two wine corks just like this,
between your thumb and your forefinger.
Can you all see that?
And then you're going to take them apart just like that.
OK?
So I'll show you guys this.
It's hard for you to see.
You're going to start like this, and you're just going to
take them apart like that.
OK?
So we start like this, and we take them apart like that.
You start like this, and you just take
them apart like that.
AUDIENCE: Wait, how?
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK.
So everyone was able to do that, no problem?
By a show of hands, how many of you were able to do that?
One, two, three.
OK.
You might have gotten the left-handed corks, so you
might need to switch them from one hand to the other.
OK.
So can you see that I've mastered this?
We're talking about mastery, right?
Of all the things I could have mastered, I picked this.
But you can see that I've mastered it.
But like many things, when you tried to do it the first time,
maybe it wasn't quite as easy as it looked.
How many of you got to this spot, right here?
Right?
And how did that feel?
Just give me some words to describe how that feels.
AUDIENCE: Stuck.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Stuck?
AUDIENCE: Frustrating.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Frustrating.
AUDIENCE: Silly.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Silly.
OK.
So is that how we feel when someone comes in and
says, oh, it's easy.
They come into your office, they show
you how to do something.
It's easy.
Just hit Enter and it's done.
And you go--
but then when you try to do it yourself, you have this
experience, right?
So for my four brave volunteers up here, and for
you guys, what do you need from me to take your next step
towards being able to master this silly skill?
What would be helpful?
AUDIENCE: Show it to us slowly.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Show it to us slowly.
See, now this is one of the interesting things that we see
about this metaphor.
The women always say two things.
One is, do it slowly.
And the other one is, do it again.
So I'm just saying, this may be a metaphor for more than
just the mastery thing that we're talking about, here.
But anyway, men usually have a completely different response.
But better instruction?
Would that be helpful?
OK.
So here's what I'm going to ask you to do.
Take your--
I'll just stand up here again, so you can see.
Take your thumb from one hand and put it on the palm end of
the cork, the end of the cork that faces your palm.
Now bring your other thumb around so it's
also on the palm end.
Make sure it's on the palm end.
And once you have your thumbs in place, just
reach over and under.
Sometimes it's easier with your middle finger.
And they should come right apart.
Did you get it?
Got it?
Get it?
OK.
So by show of hands, with a little bit better instruction,
how many of you were able to get it that time?
OK.
So most of the room.
Now the rest of you, I'm going to ask you a favor.
Please don't leave here today without
knowing how to do this.
Because I came here to help, to support, to make friends.
I don't want anyone walking out of here going, that was
the stupidest thing I ever--
[GRUMBLES].
OK?
But here's the thing.
You've had the experience now.
Have you mastered this?
For those of you who have done it, have you mastered it?
AUDIENCE: Yes.
AUDIENCE: I wouldn't say mastered.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Not quite mastery, right?
You can do it.
You know how it works.
It's maybe still a little awkward, still a little
uncomfortable.
But I believe there are four things-- you guys can go ahead
and have a seat, if you want.
Actually, everyone can have a seat, if you want.
I believe there are four things we always need to be
willing to do in order to achieve mastery.
And you guys already were willing to
do a couple of them.
The first thing we need to be willing to do is
try something new.
So here comes this crazy guy from San Diego.
He puts two wine corks on everyone's chair.
You have no idea what this is about, but you're willing to
pick up the corks and give it a try, right?
Simple as that might seem, you're willing to do that.
Number two is you're willing to ask for help.
Now could you have figured this out on your own?
Maybe.
You guys, pretty smart group.
I'm going to tell you I believe you could have figured
it out on your own.
There's only so many fingers.
There's only so many ends of the corks.
You could have figured it out.
But would it have taken longer?
And can you get it done more quickly and easily by asking
for help, getting some instruction from someone who
knows how to do it?
The third thing is be willing to be uncomfortable.
In order to really master anything, we have to be
willing to be uncomfortable.
Did I make you a little uncomfortable?
Especially the four of you who were brave enough to come up
to the front of the room?
Not only can you not do it, how many of you did that thing
where you kind of looked to the left, looked to the right,
and see if you're the only one who can't do it?
But it's a little uncomfortable.
It's a little awkward.
And that is the case whenever we try something new.
And then why is it so easy for me?
AUDIENCE: Practice.
ROBERT MACPHEE: What's that?
AUDIENCE: Practice.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Practice, right?
Thank you.
Sometimes people say, you must drink a lot of wine.
But that's not it.
[LAUGHTER]
ROBERT MACPHEE: Of all the skills I could have mastered,
this is the one.
I learned this years ago, and I saw the metaphor in it.
I had that physiological experience of what it's like
to be uncomfortable.
And when we're uncomfortable, what do we do, a lot of times?
Go right back to what we were doing before, right?
So the fourth thing that you need to be willing to do in
order to achieve mastery is be willing to do it repeatedly.
Practice, practice, practice.
And any of you, whether it's this silly little cork trick,
or whether it's a skill at work, or a skill in a
relationship, or mastering health and fitness, whatever
it might be--
if you're willing to try something new, if you are
willing to ask for help, if you're willing to be
uncomfortable, and if you're willing to do it persistently,
you can absolutely achieve mastery.
So today when we're looking at mastering living a
purpose-driven life, that's what I mean.
Being willing to do all four of those things.
So of those four things, what do you think
would be the most difficult?
Which would be the hardest one?
What's that?
AUDIENCE: Be uncomfortable.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Be uncomfortable.
AUDIENCE: For me, I think it would be number four.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Practice, practice, practice.
This is different for different people.
But I'm going to put this out as a possibility.
I believe number three, the willingness to be
uncomfortable, is the one that gets more people
stuck than any other.
The willingness to get outside of our comfort zone, to
stretch, to do something different, to risk the
response of other people.
And if you look at the other three and ask yourself, why
aren't people willing to try something new?
Often, it's because it's uncomfortable.
Why aren't people willing to ask for help?
It's often because it's uncomfortable.
And why aren't people willing to do something repeatedly?
It's because it's uncomfortable.
So the next thing I want to take a look at is this issue
of being uncomfortable.
What does it really mean?
How many of you have ever had someone say, you need to get
out of your comfort zone?
You could do more.
You could expand yourself if you were just willing to get
out of your comfort zone.
And it sounds good, right?
But what the heck does that even mean?
Like how do we know if we're outside of our comfort zone?
What is that all about?
So I want to share a model with you that zeroes in on
this issue of being uncomfortable.
And most of the time, what makes us
uncomfortable is change.
So I'm going to ask you to do something else here.
Let me ask you all to take your hands and just put them
together like this.
And look down at your hands and notice
which thumb is on top.
Just notice which thumb is on top.
Now how many of you had your right thumb on top?
And how many of you had your left thumb on top?
And did we have anybody-- sometimes we have people who
kind of layer them right next to each other.
Did we have any of those?
OK.
So for those of you who had your right thumb on top, what
that means is that you're a thinker.
You're an analytical, kind of a think it all through, go
through all the steps kind of a person.
If your left thumb was on top, that means you're sexy.
[LAUGHTER]
ROBERT MACPHEE: And if you were that rare person who has
their thumbs right next to each other, that means you
think you're sexy.
[LAUGHTER]
ROBERT MACPHEE: No, actually, that's totally made-up.
But take your hands like this and put them together, just
like we did before.
Notice which thumb's on top.
Same thumb, or different thumb?
Same one, right?
Now I'm going to ask you to take your hands and take them
apart, and move all of your fingers.
Don't just move your thumbs, but move all of your fingers
so your other thumb is on top.
And how does that feel?
AUDIENCE: Weird.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Strange?
Weird?
Uncomfortable?
Different?
What do you want to do?
Put them back the other way, right?
Aahhhh.
I believe, in this simple little metaphor, is why most
people don't achieve what they really want to achieve.
They'd rather go back to being comfortable.
Now what would happen if we just held our hands in this
new position for maybe 10 minutes?
It would become comfortable.
It actually becomes comfortable, if we're willing
to do that.
So this is what we mean by getting outside of our comfort
zone, being uncomfortable.
It's just that willingness to do that.
So I'm going to share a four-part model with you
that's going to take a look at comfort zone.
And I already asked you to consider what kind of result
you want to create in your life, what kind of new result,
what kind of new outcome you want to create.
So as we go through this, I'm going to encourage you to look
at it again through that filter, that lens, of what you
want to create.
What's important to you.
So it's going to start with results.
We're going to start in the lower right-hand corner of
this diagram, with results.
And we're going to look at what goes on that leads to
creating new results in our lives.
Now what has to happen before any new
result is going to happen?
What do we have to do before any result is
going to show up?
Any new result?
AUDIENCE: Take action.
ROBERT MACPHEE: What's that?
AUDIENCE: Take action.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Take action.
OK.
So I have a copy in my book here.
And it is signed, good.
And I'm going to give you a signed copy of my book, for
two reasons.
One is because that is in fact the word that I was looking
for, that we have to take action before we're going to
get any new results.
And the other reason I'm sharing a book is
because it's lunchtime.
You guys have been working hard.
It's the middle of the day.
And you're thinking, wait a minute.
He asked a question.
She answered the question.
She got a free book.
[LAUGHTER]
ROBERT MACPHEE: Next time he asks a question, maybe I
should answer the question.
So just going to kind of try and keep you engaged here.
But isn't it true?
In order to create results, we have to get into action.
Now I wrote this book.
It's called "Manifesting for Non-Gurus." And I normally
don't even use the word "manifesting" in a corporate
environment, because it has me back out on the
street really quickly.
Because manifesting has this vision, right?
Like I'm just going to sit at home, I'm going to be on my
couch, I'm going to hold my hands in the right way, and
put on the right music, and light the right number of
candles, and all my dreams are going to come true.
But in my experience with manifesting,
that's not it at all.
It absolutely has to come from taking action, taking what I
call inspired action.
So here's where it gets a little tricky.
What comes before any action that we take?
What precedes any action that we take?
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
ROBERT MACPHEE: You're ineligible.
You already have a book.
[LAUGHTER]
ROBERT MACPHEE: It sounds like she may have
already read the book.
Now I've got two people back here raising their hands.
How cool is that?
What was the answer?
AUDIENCE: You have to really think about your [INAUDIBLE].
ROBERT MACPHEE: You have to really think about it.
All right.
So I can't do my Tony Robbins, like charge up the aisle.
Can you guys pass that book back there?
And again, thank you.
Thoughts.
Before any action we take, there's always some thinking.
Sometimes it's very well-thought-out, very
methodical, very orchestrated.
We all think it all through.
And other times, how many of you have ever said the words,
what was I thinking?
What was I thinking before I did that?
But there's always some thought.
And if you notice, we think in pictures.
We think in imagery.
So the next, as we go through this, is to think, well, what
leads to the thoughts we think?
What is it that's putting these images in our minds that
are dictating the actions we take and the results we get?
AUDIENCE: Observation.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Observation.
AUDIENCE: Desire.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Desire?
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
ROBERT MACPHEE: Emotion?
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
ROBERT MACPHEE: What's that?
AUDIENCE: Stimulus.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Stimulus?
AUDIENCE: Problems.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Problems?
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
AUDIENCE: Experiences.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Experiences?
OK.
So this could be like a whole hour-long
workshop, in and of itself.
And I'm sorry to say, there's no free book here.
Because the reality is there's so many different things that
are creating the images that we hold in our minds.
And I'm going to lump a bunch of them into a category that I
call external influences.
External influences.
This is your boss.
This is the media.
This is the internet.
This is the television, the radio, the newspaper, the
magazines, the billboards.
Your friends, your family, your coworkers.
All are bombarding us with these external influences
that, in some cases, people are letting dictate the way
they think, the way they act, and the results
that they're getting.
See how that works?
So there's got to be a better way, right?
Because we don't want those external influences to be
running our lives.
And this is where we connect into the real central theme of
today, about purpose.
Because the one thing that probably has more influence
than anything else on the thoughts we think, the actions
we take, and the results we get is our beliefs
about who we are.
Our "I am" beliefs.
And when we allow our beliefs about who we are to really
dictate, to override, those external influences, and
determine the way we think, the way we act, and the
results we get, then we tend to live a life that's much
more purpose-driven.
We're going to have the experience of life that we
want to be having.
I used to do a lot of work with people in the health and
fitness industry, and this was eye-opening for them.
Because what we've really explained here is two
expressions that I know you've heard before.
Have you ever heard the expression,
"self-fulfilling prophecy"?
So we just defined that.
Because if I have a belief that I'm overweight, out of
shape, and I don't have time to exercise, I will think a
certain way.
I will take certain actions--
or in this case, maybe not take certain actions.
And the results that show up will tend to be in alignment
with, I'm overweight, out of shape, and don't
have time to exercise.
If, on the other hand, I think of myself as an athlete, will
I think differently?
Absolutely, right?
Will I act differently?
And will the results that show up in my life
tend to be very different?
So it's a self-fulfilling prophecy.
And the other thing that we've defined here is the term that
we started with.
Again, you've all heard the expression
"comfort zone," right?
And of all the things I'm going to share with you today,
this is probably the one to make sure that you capture.
Write this down.
Because what a comfort zone really is, when you are in a
comfort zone, is when your beliefs about who you really
are match the results that are showing up in your life.
And this can be in the area of finance, your income level.
If your belief about what your appropriate income level is
matching what's showing up in your life, you tend to be in a
comfort zone.
And there will usually be resistance to change.
In terms of health, your body weight.
In terms of your relationships.
Whatever your beliefs about who you are, if they're
matching the results, even if it's not what you want, you'll
tend to be in a comfort zone.
So a lot of people do--
let's use New Year's resolutions as an example.
Health and fitness, New Year's resolutions, January 1.
Some external influence comes in and says to this person
who's overweight and out of shape, says you know what?
You ought to lose some weight.
Yeah, I really want to get in better shape.
So they think differently.
They get an idea.
I could join the gym.
They take an action.
They go and join the gym.
They start exercising.
They might start losing some weight.
They might start seeing results.
But where are those people on February 1?
We don't know where they are.
We just know where they're not, right?
They're not at the gym anymore.
And I believe this is the number one
reason why that's true.
The number one reason why people start an exercise
program and quit is because they don't address their own
beliefs about who they really are.
They're swimming upstream.
They're dragging an anchor along with them called, I am
overweight, out of shape, and I don't have time to exercise.
And until they change those beliefs.
So what we encourage people to do, in my work, is to start
with that "I am" belief.
To start by declaring, I am worth twice as much
money as I am making.
Or I am my ideal body weight.
Or I am an athlete.
Or I deserve to be in a nurturing relationship.
Whatever it is.
Now pop quiz.
If I encourage anyone in this room to do that, to change
their belief about who you really are--
how many of you talk to yourselves, by the way?
Anyone talk to yourselves?
OK.
I've learned that there's usually, in a room this size,
about three or four people who are thinking to themselves,
talk to myself?
Do I talk to myself?
I don't think I talk to myself.
[LAUGHTER]
ROBERT MACPHEE: But the reality is we all talk to
ourselves, right?
So if I say to you to make this new declaration--
double your income, lose the weight, get into a
relationship, whatever it is--
what does the mind say?
What's the conversation?
What's the response?
AUDIENCE: OK, how?
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK, how?
I have three kids.
My youngest is now 15.
When she was younger, she used to say, yeah, right.
Because there's that self-doubt.
There's, you've tried before and failed.
You've never been able to do this.
What makes you think you can do that?
Trying to keep you in your comfort zone.
Because the belief that you're declaring about doubling your
income or losing the weight or whatever doesn't match the
results that are showing up right now, right?
Because your income right now is what it is.
Your body shape, your weight, is what it is right now.
So this is you trying to stay in your comfort zone.
But here's the beauty of this model, in terms of creating
lasting change, is that when people are willing to start by
declaring a new belief, and really connecting to that and
recognizing how important it is, and to hold on to that and
allow the new ideas, the new thoughts, the new approaches
to emerge that will lead them to taking the actions that are
necessary to create change, to do things differently at home,
at work, wherever it is, and then to allow those new
results to show up that'll match the new belief, then
we've created a new comfort zone.
So you've literally created a result that matches your
desired belief, and now you let go of the resistance
because you've created a new comfort zone.
That make sense?
And again, it works in any area of your life.
And again, if you look at this in the context of your teams,
it can work in groups just as much as with individuals.
Some of the conflict and issues and turbulence that
shows up amongst teams is because we have all these
different perceptions of who we really are.
And when the team gets really clear about a shared vision
and purpose, and stays clear about that, it's much easier
to go through this whole process of ideas and actions
and results.
So again, what I coach people to do is start in that lower
left-hand corner, with "I am." Our beliefs about who we
really are.
And my work is really focused in that area.
I mentioned that I have this book.
I also have a partner journal.
And when I was halfway through writing the book, I created
this journal.
Because like I told you guys at the beginning, I'm
passionate about people implementing what I teach.
How many of you have heard the term "shelf
help?" Ever heard that?
I don't want my book to become shelf help.
Which means people buy it with the best of intentions, they
go home, they put it on a shelf, and they never read it.
That doesn't do anyone any good.
So the journal is a way for people to
implement the approach.
And what I'm going to do now is I'm actually to show you
what that approach is, the five-step approach that I
teach people to lead more of the kind of life that they
really want to be leading.
And we're going to go through five simple steps.
So the first question that I teach, that I use--
and this is the connection from the previous model--
is the question, who am I?
Who am I?
Now, if we were to walk out on campus here and just start
asking people, who are you?
Who are you?
Who are you?
What kind of answers do you think
would come up for people?
AUDIENCE: Job title.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Job title, right?
AUDIENCE: Their name.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Their name.
It's usually the roles we play.
And that is one area of who we really are, the
roles that we play.
But I believe this is really more how we express who we
really are.
In my book and in the journal, we look at the question, who
am I, from four different points of view.
The first is our roles.
The second is our skills and talents, the things that we're
really good at, we tend to identify with.
The third is what we call contribution.
And this is one of the really powerful elements.
When we really are connected to our sense of contribution,
what we're here to do, how we can improve other people's
lives as well as ours, we get a strong sense of who we are.
And then the fourth part is what we call core self.
Who we are beyond this human experience.
Beyond the body, the car we drive, the clothes we wear,
the thoughts we think, all that.
Who are we?
And it's really quite profound when people connect at a deep
level to a sense of who we really are.
So I invite you--
again, I do a two-and-a-half-day weekend
workshop, and we spend a whole day on this question.
Who am I?
We have an hour today.
So there's not that much we can really do with it.
But I invite you in this moment to just ask yourself
that question.
Who am I?
If we had more time, I'd actually partner you guys up
and have you sit across from someone and ask the question,
who are you?
Who are you?
Who are you?
Over and over again, for about a minute to a
minute and a half.
And the experience, for most people, the first thing that
comes up, is what you guys said.
It's the roles.
It's the things we do.
But when someone keeps asking, and you have to keep coming up
with different answers, we tend to go deeper.
We tend to connect to who we really are, what's most
important to us.
Things like the contribution that we really want to make.
One of the things I've loved about looking at this company
is that I know that's a really important
part of your culture.
Making a contribution.
Doing something worthwhile.
Impacting other people's lives.
I would imagine most of you come to work on a daily basis,
knowing that you're doing something much bigger than
what your day-to-day responsibilities are.
And that's what we mean by really being connected to that
sense of, who am I?
And it's also what I mean by how it affects organizations
as well as individuals.
So who am I?
So this second question's a little more straightforward.
It's called, what am I intending to attract?
And I kind of asked you guys this question at the beginning
of the presentation today.
What are you intending to attract?
What is the result that you want to create?
And what I'm going to ask you to do is--
a lot of you don't have something to write with.
But if you can, write it down.
And in this moment, declare an intention.
Declare a desired result.
A specific and measurable result.
Just think for a minute about what that would be.
What are you intending to attract?
It could be something personal.
It could be something professional.
It could be health-related.
It could be relationship-related.
Whatever it is, in your mind or on paper,
declare your intention.
And I invite you, as you do that, to kind of peek back
over your shoulder at the first question we looked at,
and ask yourself, is that intention in alignment, with
who you really are?
The approach I teach is to get people to be really clear
about their intentions, but also to really know that those
intentions are in alignment with who they really are.
Because that's a very powerful place to act from.
Does everyone have something in mind?
OK.
So how many of you would be willing to share your
intention with the group?
Even if you might get a free book?
No, I'm kidding.
Oh, another hand popped up back there.
OK.
So I'm not going to ask you to share your intention.
But what I am going to do--
I want to ask for some feedback from those of you who
didn't raise your hand.
And remember, I asked you how many of you talk to
yourselves?
And you all pretty much raised your hand.
We all talk to ourselves.
When I said, how many of you would like to share your
intention, would be willing to share your intention?
Something happened there.
A conversation started, right?
And I'd just like to hear some examples of what you told
yourself, that said, no, don't raise your hand.
What was your reason for not raising your hand and sharing
your intention?
And there's no right or wrong or good or bad answers.
I just want to get a sense of what kind of things come up
for people.
AUDIENCE: I wanted to hear what other people had.
ROBERT MACPHEE: You wanted to hear what other
people had to say.
OK.
AUDIENCE: Gets really long, really quickly.
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK, so it got kind of long-winded.
OK.
AUDIENCE: Only going to make sense to myself.
It was an inner thought.
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK.
So it's only going that make sense to
you, versus the group.
All right.
AUDIENCE: It's too revealing.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Too revealing, too personal.
OK.
Anything else?
AUDIENCE: A little bit shameful?
ROBERT MACPHEE: What's that?
AUDIENCE: A little bit shameful?
ROBERT MACPHEE: A little bit of shame about the
choice that you made.
OK.
So here's what I'm going to ask you all to do.
First of all, I'm going to teach you a little bit of a
facilitation technique.
Because I'm about to a total control of the room go to you
guys, instead of me.
In a minute, I'm going to ask you to stand
up and get a partner.
But before we do that, I want to teach
you a little technique.
And you're going to be talking amongst ourselves.
And in order for me to get control of the room back, and
keep us moving forward and finish on time, I'm going to
raise my hand at one point.
And when I raise my hand, if you see my hand go up, I'm
going to ask you to raise your hand as well.
And when you raise your hand, you're going to pretend like
there's a string attached to your hand and your jaw.
So when your hand goes up, your jaw shuts
and you stop talking.
Right?
So this is just a way-- you guys are going to be talking
amongst yourselves for just a minute, and it's a way for us
to just bring the attention back to the front of the room.
So let's try that.
Go ahead and just turn to the person next to you, or the
person behind you, and just talk to them about anything.
What you're having for lunch, whatever it might be.
When you see my hand go up--
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
ROBERT MACPHEE: All right.
Very good.
All right.
So I'm going to ask everyone to stand up.
And find yourself a partner and sit
down facing your partner.
The reason I asked you to stand up first is for those of
you who are in between--
like this person goes that way for a partner, this person
goes that way, and you're standing there alone, once you
have your partner, sit down facing your partner, it's
going to make it really easy for the people who don't yet
have a partner to find somebody.
So just sit down facing your partner.
You guys are good.
Very good.
OK.
So I need to--
let's see.
In each partnership, I need you to figure out who has the
longest hair.
Person who has the longest hair.
If it's the exact same length, it would be the darkest color
that we'll go with.
And that person is going to go first.
And what you're going to do is for one minute, you're going
to share whatever it is you're
comfortable about your intention.
What came to mind for you?
And if you don't want to, if it's something really
personal, and you don't want to go all the way into depth
about it, you can give kind of an overview.
But just for-- and I'm going to give you like 45 seconds.
Just share with your partner about what came up for you
when you declared that intention.
OK?
So person with the longest or darkest hair
is going to go first.
You have 45 seconds.
Go ahead and begin.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK.
I totally looked at the wrong number on my clock, and I have
no idea how much time that actually was.
But it feels like about 45 seconds.
So we're going to switch roles now, and if you were
listening, you're going to be sharing.
If you were sharing, you're going to be listening.
This time, it really will be 45 seconds.
Go ahead and begin.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK, great.
Thank you.
Now I want to hear from a couple people, especially
those who didn't raise your hand-- which is the vast
majority of the room, so that won't be a problem.
But how did it feel to share your intention, or part of
your intention, something about your intention with
someone else?
First of all, everyone OK?
Everyone all right?
We all survived that?
[LAUGHTER]
ROBERT MACPHEE: All right, good.
How did that feel?
How did that work?
What happened?
AUDIENCE: Felt better one on one, [INAUDIBLE].
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK, so it felt better one on one.
You had a little chance to explain it.
What else?
AUDIENCE: I think I realized how many things are connected
to my intention.
It's not really-- you think it's just about work.
It's really not.
There's so many other factors.
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK, so you gained clarity about your
intention by sharing it with--
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE].
ROBERT MACPHEE: Well, a broader perspective, though.
You realized more about it.
AUDIENCE: Lot of factors [INAUDIBLE].
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK, good.
Thank you.
AUDIENCE: Love sharing personal
thoughts with total strangers.
ROBERT MACPHEE: You love sharing personal thoughts with
total strangers.
All right.
We'll work on that later.
Perfect.
[INTERPOSING VOICES]
ROBERT MACPHEE: It was what?
AUDIENCE: Good to go second.
[LAUGHTER]
ROBERT MACPHEE: Good to go second?
Why was it good to go second?
AUDIENCE: [INAUDIBLE]
ROBERT MACPHEE: OK.
So he survived.
It was OK for him.
No, that's a good point.
Because once we have a chance to kind of see how we respond
to someone else, we can imagine maybe they'll respond
the same way, right?
AUDIENCE: I realize other people have the same issues
and concerns that I do.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Realized other people have the same kind of
issues that I do.
They want the same kind of thing.
How many of you had that experience, where you realized
there was some similarity of intention?
OK.
So again, we could take sharing, we could do a full
hour just on this.
But I asked you to do that because every--
I actually thought it might be different today.
Every time, I think it might be different.
This is Google.
These guys are all going to raise their hands.
They're all going to want to share.
But there's something that tells us it's not OK to share.
Now should you share your most important, your most personal
intentions with everyone?
AUDIENCE: No.
ROBERT MACPHEE: No.
Absolutely not.
But aren't we all surrounded by like-minded, supportive,
encouraging people somewhere in our life?
And if we're willing to share our goals, our intentions, our
desires, our dreams, we can get help.
Did anyone find that the person you shared with said,
ooh, I can help you with that?
Did that show up anywhere?
Well, that just blasts my whole theory about Google
right there.
Come on.
[LAUGHTER]
AUDIENCE: We're good listeners.
ROBERT MACPHEE: But that can help.
Really good listeners, OK.
You guys really follow instructions well.
That's great.
But do you get a sense of, its OK, right?
To stick your toe in the water, to
share with one person.
And granted, I asked you to do something that was a much
bigger stretch, to stand up in front of the
whole group and share.
That's a different question than just
sharing with one person.
But you have the experience.
Most people aren't willing to share even with one person.
So I want to give you the experience of what it's like
to share that intention, to anchor it in more deeply, to
get more clear about how important it is to you.
And hopefully get a clearer vision.
Get clarification and feedback from someone, get support and
help, whatever it might be.
So that's our intentions.
The third question of the approach that I teach, after
we look at setting our intention and making sure that
intention is in alignment with who we really are, is to ask
the question, how will I feel?
How will I feel?
And when we look at manifestation, when we look at
creating new results in our life, we look at things like
the law of attraction, I believe this question about
feeling and emotion is really the language of all this work.
That when we connect deeply to the feelings and emotions we
most want to experience, we start attracting more of that
into our life.
I work with people all the time, and they've got, like, a
pocketful of 3x5 cards with their visualizations, their
affirmations.
They've got them all written down.
They'll come up to me and they'll go, I heard this guy
Jack Canfield speak, or I read your book, or whatever.
And I know, I've been doing my visualizations, my
affirmations, every single day.
And this stuff doesn't work.
And I'm thinking to myself, what's the feeling and emotion
that this person is experiencing?
There's anger, there's resentment, there's fear,
there's doubt, there's worry.
And I believe that person is sending a message to the
universe saying, please send me more anxiety, fear, doubt,
worry, pain, all of that.
Because that's the feeling and emotion that they're
experiencing.
So of all these questions that I teach as part of the
journal, "How will I feel?" is the simplest one.
But I believe it's the most powerful one.
When we really connect to the feeling and emotion of what it
will be like to earn more money, to be our ideal body
weight, to be in the perfect relationship,
how will that feel?
To me, that's what really gets the wheels moving.
I'd love to spend more time on that, but.
OK.
The fourth question, the fourth step that we look at,
is called letting go of attachments.
How many of you would agree that we have a tendency to
make things more difficult than they need to be?
Anyone else, or is that just me?
OK.
So attachments is how we do that.
Attachments, the way I define it, is any way that we're
using our attention, our thinking, our beliefs, in ways
that are not supporting us.
This is things like needing to figure out how to do it
ourselves, needing to figure out all the steps before we
get started, needing it to happen now, being worried
about what other people might think, judgment of other
people or judgment of ourselves.
These are all ways that we can use our attention
that don't serve us.
That are slowing us down, rather than speeding us up.
So part of my work is about, first of all, identifying what
those attachments are, and second of all, looking at ways
that we can let go of those attachments.
There's some amazingly powerful resources out there
to help us to recognize what the attachments are that are
getting in our way, and ways to let go.
Again, in an hour today, we don't have time to really go
into depth on that.
But when you start recognizing and being aware of what your
own attachments are, what are the things that are getting in
your way, and get better at letting go of those, it's
amazing how you can accelerate your results.
One thing that I do in my work that's a little bit unique, in
terms of this area of letting go of attachments, is this is
where we focus in on gratitude and appreciation.
I believe that gratitude and appreciation--
first of all, it's kind of a nice bridge from the feeling
step into this look at attachments.
But sometimes when people set a goal and they realize that
it's really in alignment with who they are, they connect to
the feeling and emotion of how they really want to be
experiencing life, and they know that this goal is perfect
for that, they can get to the point where they,
like, really need it.
Like, I need it to happen.
Like, it's so important.
My life won't be complete unless I have it.
And I believe gratitude and appreciation is the way to
stay out of that trap.
Because we really don't need it.
Our lives, everyone in this room, our lives are
amazing right now.
And if we pause and allow ourselves just to be grateful
for the blessings that we have now-- the friends, the family,
the opportunities, where we live, this amazing company
that you're working for, this environment here that's just
so remarkable.
When we pause and allow ourselves to be grateful, we
can settle into a state that I call high intention and low
attachment.
High intention--
clarity, focus, certainty about what
you're working on achieving.
But low attachment.
I don't need this.
My life is amazing just as it is.
And when you really settle into that state, it's amazing
how powerful we can be.
How many of you have ever dealt with a salesperson who
needed to make the sale?
Anyone?
OK.
And how many of you have dealt with a salesperson who was so
passionate about what they do, so unattached, they were just
so passionate about what they do, that you bought something
from them that you didn't even need.
Right?
That's the difference that I'm talking about.
High intention, clarity, focus.
On purpose, but non-attached.
And then finally, the fifth step that we teach is called
taking inspired action.
Which brings us back to that four-part model.
No new result is going to be showing up
without taking action.
But the difference is with this kind of approach, with
asking ourselves these kinds of questions, we are taking
action from a different place.
From a different point of view.
I tell people what most people are doing out there, when they
get around this kind of goal-setting, personal
development kind of work, is they're looking
at step number two.
They set a goal.
And then they skip right ahead to step
number five, take action.
Right?
And these are the people that are working hard, lots of
effort, will power.
No matter what, I'm going to do it.
And they may be getting results, but in terms of the
experience that I talked about, they're rarely having
the experience that they want to be having.
And they're rarely getting results that really last.
So I encourage people to take a look at the difference.
Like what would the difference be if I really was
clear about who I am?
If I was connected to the feelings and emotions that I
most want to experience?
And if I had increased my awareness of and inability to
let go of the attachments before I take action?
And how different would that be?
So I had one other piece.
Oh, we have time.
Cool.
Thought we were out of time.
All right.
So when I get into inspired action, I rarely have people
go, action, that's bogus.
I just want to sit on the couch and meditate.
I don't want to take action.
People know they need to take action.
So I want to share with you something.
Does everyone have something to write on?
So I'm going to ask you take a piece of paper and a pen or
pencil, and be ready to write.
Because I'm going to have you do an exercise related to
multitasking.
Now how many of you, personally or professionally,
are put in a position where you feel like you need to
periodically multitask?
Anyone?
OK.
So how many of you consider yourself to be really good
multitaskers?
Anyone in the room think you're a really good
multitasker?
Couple of them.
OK.
So I'm going to give you a point of view about
multitasking.
I'm going to ask you to write out a sentence in a minute.
And this is the sentence.
Now everyone always wants to cheat.
So I can't really see very well, but you're going to have
to wait until I say go.
OK?
I'm going to ask you, in a minute, to write this sentence
out but to do it in a very unique way.
You're going to write it one letter at a time.
And then after you write the letter, you're going to write
a number below it.
It's going to go just like this.
You're going to start with the letter M. And then below it,
you're going to write the number 1.
Then you're going to go back up to the letters and write U,
and go down and write 2.
L, 3, T, 4.
I hope that's as far as I went.
Yes.
So you see how that works?
Letter, number, letter, number.
And I'm going to time you.
OK?
And when you're done, you're going to-- don't start yet.
There's always people who want to cheat.
When you're done, you're going to stand up.
And I will tell you how long it took.
So keep track of how long it took.
So you all ready?
Don't start yet.
Don't start till I say go.
Oh, I saw that.
All right.
All right, so ready?
Go.
31.
35.
Remember how long it took you.
40.
44.
51.
53.
55.
57.
59.
OK.
So if you didn't finish, go ahead and just notice how far
you got in one minute.
So just make a note of how far you got.
And everyone else can sit down.
Now I'm just curious, how many of you are doing this on a
phone or a computer?
That's so cool.
All right.
That's a first for me.
I'll share that with all the other groups I do this with.
So now I'm going to ask to do it differently.
Same task, but you're going to do it differently.
And again, don't start till I say go.
I'm going to time you again.
Anybody notice the level of anxiety that started to show
up when other people finished ahead of you?
Right back to second grade, right?
OK.
So this time, the same thing.
You're going to write all the letters and
then all the numbers.
And this time, you're going to write the letters first.
Write the whole sentence from start to finish.
And then you're going to write-- there's actually 27
numbers, so you're going to go from 1 to 27.
Don't start yet.
I see those pens come up.
So when I say go, you're going to write the whole sentence
and then the numbers 1 to 27.
Same thing, stand up when you're done.
Ready, go.
Stay standing.
18, 19, 20, 22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28, 29, 30.
OK.
So again, if you didn't finish, notice how far you got
in 30 seconds.
So have a seat.
So what was the difference between the two?
What's that?
By a show of hands, how many of you got
further the second time?
And what was the experience like the first time?
What was the experience like of doing one, then the other,
then going back and forth?
AUDIENCE: Frustrating.
AUDIENCE: Very frustrating.
ROBERT MACPHEE: Frustrating.
Someone else up here said frustrating.
What other--?
AUDIENCE: I noticed there was a mental jar, soon as I got to
the two-digit numbers.
ROBERT MACPHEE: A mental jar when--
OK, so a little something different.
You got to two-digit numbers and that threw you off a
little bit.
All right.
So kind of like the corks-- this particular task won't
take you very far in life, but the experience, the
physiological experience of realizing what it's like to go
back and forth from one task to the other, versus making a
commitment to start at the beginning and finish a task
before you move on to the other, is an amazing
productivity tool.
An amazing way to get more done in a
realistic amount of time.
And for people-- and I'm one of them.
I still get pulled into multitasking.
I teach this stuff.
But any time you're checking your email while you're on a
phone call, this is exactly what you're doing.
This exercise comes from someone named Dave Crenshaw,
who wrote a book called "The Myth of Multitasking." And he
says there's no such thing as multitasking.
There's only switch-tasking.
Switching back and forth.
And it wears you out.
It exhausts you.
I skipped over a step of this, which is, if I had let you all
go to the end, and I took a little poll about how many
numbers there actually were, I probably would've gotten 25s,
26s, 28s, 29s.
Because when you're going fast and trying to do it, it
affects your accuracy, as well.
So the degree to which you're able to commit blocks of time,
finish something start to finish, is the degree to which
your productivity will really go up.
It'll help you get more of the inspired actions done.
So we're pretty much where we need to be.
Were right at the top of the hour.
And I wish I could be here all day, all afternoon.
But I'm going to finish with a couple questions for you.
First of all, as we look at the five steps, as the
questions, who am I?
What am I intending to attract?
How will I feel?
Letting go of attachments and inspired action.
And as we look at those four things I pointed out that we
need to be willing to do in order to achieve mastery--
the four steps of trying something new, asking for
help, being willing to be uncomfortable, and being
willing to be persistent--
my question for you is what's most important for
you to focus on?
That's nine different things.
Five steps and four things that you need to do.
For everyone in this room, there's an area to zero in on.
For some people, it might really be getting clear about
your purpose.
For other people, it might just be
about taking more action.
For someone else, it might be that being willing to be
uncomfortable.
But again, I want everyone to leave here with something
clear and concrete that you know you can focus on, that
you can do.
That you can even work on and focus on for the rest of your
day today, and say, I would be willing to--
again, not multitask for the rest of the day.
Or get clear.
Take 10 minutes and really get clear about that
question, who am I?
Whatever it is.
But for you, out of those nine questions, what is most
important for you?
And the other question I would leave you with is-- what if?
What if you led your life from more of a place of clarity
about who you really are, what your intentions are?
More of a connection to those feelings and emotions you most
want to experience?
If you were more aware of the attachments that get in your
way, and more able to let go of those attachments, and if
you were taking more inspired action,
what would be different?
How would things be different?
And the same thing with those mastery questions.
I will support you, help you, in any way I can.
As you're looking at that one thing, as you're considering
what that one thing is that you'll focus on, Rachael and
her department actually very graciously purchased 25 of my
books to share with those of you who are here in the room.
So if you're willing to come up to Rachael and to share
with her what you're going to focus on, what is that one
thing that you're going to focus on?
What's one thing you took from this conversation today that
you feel like you can implement?
She's going to give you a free copy of my book.
Now don't climb all over each other in order to get those,
but anyway.
The other thing I have here is I have copies of the journal.
If you're interested in using the journal and the book
together to implement this approach, to try it out
yourself, the journals are normally $19.95.
You can get them for $10 here today.
For anyone who's watching online who's not in the room,
there's a website called manifestingbook.com.
It's on the slide.
And if you click on the image of the book at that page,
manifestingbook.com, you'll get an offer for a book and a
journal-- the books are normally $15, the
journals are $20.
You'll get the book and the journal together, signed from
my office, for $20 if you click on that link.
So I'm available to help in any way I can.
Would love to stay connected and support you in any way I
can, and that's one way.
I wish I had time to tell that story, but I don't.
I'm going to finish on time.
I don't know.
Do we have time to take a couple questions
if people have them?
AUDIENCE: So one thing I've noticed when trying to
multitask is that it's a lot harder to do two verbal tasks,
like talking with someone and reading, versus talking with
someone and driving or playing a video game.
I was wondering if there's any scientific basis for that, if
there's sort of like a language part of the brain?
ROBERT MACPHEE: I don't know the science behind it, but I
would totally agree with you.
And I think it kind of depends on how you define
multitasking.
I'm definitely that guy who's going to put a load of laundry
in and have that laundry washing itself while I'm
working on something.
I'm definitely that guy who's listening to something on tape
while I'm driving, because I don't want to just be wasting
my time listening to sports talk radio or
whatever it might be.
So there's elements of kind of complementary activities.
And I think you bring up a really good point.
If we're using the same area of our brain, if we're using
the same kind of communication skills, if we're trying to
carry on one conversation at the same time we're carrying
on another conversation, that's the stuff that's really
going to drive us crazy.
And not being a smart aleck, but if I was speaking
somewhere else and someone asked that question, and they
were really interested in the research, where do you think
I'd tell them to go?
[LAUGHTER]
ROBERT MACPHEE: I mean, it's all accessible.
I think one of the most amazing things about the world
we live in right now--
and this is part of the reason I titled my book "Manifesting
for Non-Gurus"--
is we don't need gurus anymore.
We all have access to all the information we could possibly
need, and then some.
And we can indeed create the lives that we
really want to live.
AUDIENCE: Do you have a formula for
multitasking better?
I've heard--
I've heard something like 60/40/20.
Like doing something for 60 minutes, then another priority
for 40 minutes, and taking a break for 20.
Is there something that you've found is
maybe better than that?
ROBERT MACPHEE: So I'm glad you clarified the question.
Because the answer to "Is there a way to multitask
better?" That's an easy question, called no.
Because again, there's no such thing as multitasking.
But you bring up a good point.
The research that I've seen says no more than 50--
5-0-- minutes to really expect yourself to be focused on any
given task.
And then we need to get up.
We need to walk around.
We need to take a breath.
We need 10 minutes of a little bit of a break before we come
back to whatever it is we're working on.
But most people don't even give themselves that kind of
block of time.
I'm talking about, you know, the phone is off, the door is
closed, everything is shut down, so you're totally
focused on something for 50 minutes.
It's amazing how much you can get done if you do that.
If you try to do that for two hours, the mind can't keep up.
You can't do that.
So 50 minutes, and then take a break, and then come back, is
the number that I've seen.
So thank you all very much.
[APPLAUSE]