All You Need Is Love

Love. I believe that The Beatles were right when they sang that “all you need is love.”  Why then, does it elude so many of us?

It’s because love is a verb.

Love Is A Verb

The reason many of us don’t get the love we are seeking is that love is not something we get, period. It isn’t something we seek.  It doesn’t come to us, nobody can ‘give’ it to us, and we certainly don’t fall into (or out of) it. Love isn’t something “out there” that you need to fill something that is missing inside of you.  If it were, it would imply that you are less than complete. Less than whole.  That is not the case! There may be times when you feel that this may be true, but let me assure that it is not. You are of an infinite worth…. and nothing outside (or even inside) of you can ever change that.

Yes, love is a verb.  It’s not something we get… it’s something we do.  Love is a choice – and a realization – put into action.

We can’t make the choice before we have the realization, though.  We can try, but it doesn’t work… It is impossible to love others until you fully love yourself.

First, Love Yourself

The realization that we must come to is that you are worthy of loving yourself in every way imaginable. You are complete, whole, divine and perfectly as you were meant to be. You are unique in the world, just as you should be, and are of an infinite worth. You are no less than anyone on this planet and are fully deserving of every gift & blessing that exists.  You must love yourself…. this is the realization that you must have.

Loving yourself isn’t just about saying to yourself “I am good enough, I accept myself.” Loving yourself isn’t about just seeing potential in yourself. Loving yourself is about digging deep and arriving at a place where you are completely filled, to overflowing, with gratitude and appreciation for who you are.  True self-love means accepting & embracing every part of you, not just the ones you aspire to, or the ones that other people compliment you on. True self-love is knowing who you are, regardless of what others think. It is embracing the shadows, as well as the sunshine.  It is accepting the parts of you that you are ashamed of & afraid of and loving them. They are a part of who you are, and who you are is perfect.

When you catch a glimpse of your divinity, you become unshakable in your self-esteem. Insecurity & arrogance fall away completely. You no longer need reassurance from others because you know it, you feel it, you live it.  You have a full cup. In fact, it overflows.

You Cannot Love Others Until You Love Yourself

Once you arrive at this realization, you are empowered to love others. Yes, love is a choice to uphold others in their greatness.  Love is desiring the best for others, and acting upon that desire. Until we have this realization, we are unable to love others. We can say it, we wish it, we can yearn for it… but trying to love others without completely loving yourself is like trying to fill someone’s glass with an empty pitcher.  It is impossible.

Actually, without this realization we are not only unable to love others as they deserve, we are unable to receive love. As Stephen Chbosky points out, “we accept the love we think we deserve.”  Until you realize that you are worthy & deserving of an abundance of love, you will not receive it. It won’t matter if someone crosses your path who is able to give it, you won’t receive it because you are unable to receive it.

To make the choice to love others, we must first love ourselves and be free to love. We must remove all the limitations from our mind & heart that would hinder us selflessly caring for others. We need to be in a state of peace, before we can offer love to others.

May you have this realization of your own greatness, and may you pour it out on all those you meet…

(For the latest news on this subject, check out: SocialMediaAdventure.com)

TOO MANY Friends?

“Do you really know ALL of your facebook friends? There’s NO WAY you have actually met all of those people!”

These are statements I hear often, and it’s understandable considering the fact that I have thousands of facebook & twitter connections. The comments come in many variations, but they are all implying the same thing… those thousands of friends? They aren’t REAL friends….

Rob Harter, co-pilot extraordinnaire

At first I felt guilty for having so many friends, and would have a hard time answering that question. But then, the revelation came. After being asked that question while on a recent road trip, my friend (and co-pilot) Rob Harter reminded me to look at the glass as ‘half full’. My response then became clear: “No, I haven’t met all of them personally… but imagine what a party it would be if I did!” Can you imagine what it would be like to have that many genuine friends? Or better yet, to have them all in the same place at the same time, celebrating our friendship?

And so began the experiment…

I decided to interact with my online friends in a way that I hadn’t attempted before. I sent an update to facebook & twitter accounts via text message, encouraging everyone to communicate with me while I travelled on the road trip. There was a problem though, I wasn’t online while I was driving across the country…

You Gave Out Your Cell Phone On Twitter???

Yes, I started posting my cell phone to facebook and twitter, encouraging people to get in touch with me. Honestly, it didn’t even cross my mind that it wasn’t ‘safe’…after all, these were my friends! And then, something happened, the responses came – FROM ALL OVER THE WORLD! (Canada, USA, Mexico, UK, Indonesia, etc) From people sharing directions when we were lost, to people sending funny jokes or words of encouragement while I was drowsy behind the wheel, there was a community effort and an outpouring of love like I hadn’t felt before.

But The Real Power Was Still To Come!

What I love about Social Media is that it is a steady evolution toward real relationships. Many have argued that technology distances us, but I am optimistic and extremely confident that the evolution of “Web 2.0” is leading us toward creating genuine, authentic and in-person relationships. In fact, I know it…it’s what I experienced.

In a short trip to Toronto, I made more genuine friends than I could have ever imagined. A few highlights include:

'random' friend finds in Starbucks

• Melissa, the ‘random’ friend that showed up at a London, Ontario Starbucks while I was checking my email… (Thanks for the tip!)
• Super Spiritual Girl, a twitter hero of mine! (Follow her for amazing insights and an exciting upcoming announcement)
• Veronica, the angel of a woman who created the video that I have watched near-daily for over a year. (Watch it on my blog if you haven’t already!)
• Cheri Najor, one of the most powerful professional speakers that I have ever witnessed in human form. In a simple bagel store, I was moved emotionally listening to her absolute passion for life and immense love for her son. (see www.kreativnrg.com)
• Many, many, more…  (Sorry I didn’t mention you all, You’ll be in future posts!)

The interesting thing about all of these people, though, is that we had connected online – through social media – and had never met in person. In fact, when we first made the online connection, I doubt that any of us imagined that we would ever meet, or even become great friends!

Now, I have a whole new perspective on life because of my new friends. They have all taught me something that I will carry with me forever.

I also have a new perspective on the internet, social media, and ‘web 2.0’. It isn’t just a fancy way to waste time or a powerful way to make money…it’s a way to promote peace, love and happiness.

What Now?

I am finishing up a book on the power of Social Media, and will use this road trip as a case study. I will include dozens of stories that I couldn’t include here. I will share more on the principles embodied in the social media revolution that will transform the way that businesses operate, and more importantly how we interact with each other as human beings.

I welcome all of your insights, messages, questions and feedback… I will keep you posted on the details and look forward to sharing it with you all, and the world!

UPDATE

The response has been SO POWERFUL from this trip, that I am excited to announce the Social Media Adventure a cross-continent summer trip to demonstrate the power that Social Media has to create genuine & profitable relationships!

Check it out at: www.SocialMediaAdventure.com

Welcome to my blog!

As you follow my blog and subscribe to my newsletter, you will notice that I am absolutely passionate about realizing the full human potential.  This applies to my own life, but I also believe that when we have something good it is only a natural result to want to share it with others.  This blog, then, is my gift to you.

It is my intention that I will be able to share enough of value to help you:

• Believe in your dreams
• Design & live the lifestyle you dream of
• Have the skills & mindset to accomplish any goal
• Equip you with the confidence, ability and resources to share with others!

My long term vision is to have a tremendous impact on the planet.  There are many people in need of hope, love and the ability to create a better life for themselves and their loved ones.  Will you join me in having this sort of impact?

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