From Running With The Wolves to Holding Them At Bay...

What is a father?

Part of being a father, for me, is knowing where to draw boundaries. 

Boundaries for Corrina, but more importantly, boundaries for myself. Because so much of her development is influenced by what I model with my own behavior. What I reverberate, she picks up and learns to transmit. 

Shadow included. (gulp)

The rate at which a person can mature is directly proportional to the embarrassment he can tolerate. ~Douglas Engelbart

Now, there’s a part of me will always be a 22 year old. Like Huck Finn on Dead Tour, deep down, I’ll always have a desire to hit the road and explore the world. Especially with friends.

Last weekend, Corrina & I went camping in Ithaca (rated one of the top 10 places in the world to drop out of “society” by Outsider magazine). It was perfect weather, and we were totally in the flow - the kind of flow that only happens on road trips!

My friend Teresa and her daughter Corina shared the adventure with us.  We made a weekend of waterfall walking, gourmet hippie cuisine - it’s great to see the girls trying things they’ve never had before, and loving them! -  swimming, blackberry picking, hiking, crystals & best friend pendants and a dozen silver dollar sized, vegan pancakes down by the river with baby ducks to feed... it was heaven.

A strong man and a waterfall always channel their own path. ~Anonymous

The waterfall walking was, by far, my favorite part. The 3/4 mile hike through the gorge is magnificent. Shale walls forever crumble inward toward the limestone creek-bed. All along the way there were small waterfalls where the girls would wash and “recharge” their new amethyst crystals - a gift from Teresa.

We reached Toughanock Falls at dusk, after everyone else had shied away. 

A “Do Not Enter” sign hung from the foot-bridge 50 yards from the plummeting water. 

We decided to brave it, taking responsibility for our choices. 

Corrina and I often talk about the paradoxical “Circle of Freedom and Responsibility” and how making good choices, even when difficult, will get her more freedom - with me, and in life.

I hung back with the girls, while Teresa ventured right up to the 200-foot falls with the kids’ crystals - named Shimmer & Shine - in her pocket. She came back drenched! We all had a good time. 

The next day, leaving town, we stopped by the lower falls. A few brave souls were leaping from the 30-35 foot drop of limestone. I got it in my mind to try that. 

“Don’t Die Wondering" has been my motto for some time, now. And it's served me well... to a point.

Naturally, Corrina protested. I told her I ‘heard’ her and motioned to move on with our adventure. We skipped some excellent shale stones on the shore as the jumpers waded to our end of the pool to exit. Corrina reiterated her fear and I hugged her and told her I heard her. Of course, I’m not all punch and pie... the third or fourth time she brought it up I shut her down, told her I had heard her and that I would get angry if she brought it up again.

What is uttered from the heart alone, Will win the hearts of others to your own. ~Johann Wolfgang von Goethe 

We all got in the water - fully clothed - planning to change back at the car. I decided I was gonna teach Corrina a lesson in physics (there’s magic in ledge-jumping... you land further forward than your mind can project since you aren’t used to the additional 20-30 feet of drop) and in “feeling the fear and doing it anyway.” 

Since it was right there in front of me I began my ascent, climbing up the pile of falling water over majestic, mossy boulders of the lower falls. Every step and finger-hold was blessed by some magical intuition that I wouldn’t fall and die (this was a harrowing mindfulness practice).

At the top I thanked the terra firma and reflected on the day prior, where we had followed the riverbed to the source. I thought about my Source, and I thought about my death. Jumping from heights is not something I do often. Ever, really. Not once, actually, have I ever jumped from heights above 6-7 feet. 

In fact, I’m terrified of heights. Not fear that I will fall... but that I will jump. So this seemed like the right thing to do. Face my death. Cuz I’m a spiritual warrior... and shit...

An error doesn't become a mistake until you refuse to correct it. ~JFK

So, I peered over the edge of the drop-off. The girls were on the shore opposite me, camera in hand. I turned to the source and I closed my eyes, stood tall, stretching in the sun, and considered the man I’ve been up to that point. Then I felt into my back-body and I thought of my impending “death” and the man I would be, walking up onto that shore. Proving to my frightened little girl that I’m a man, I tackle challenges like they’re munchkins, or face a part of myself that other kids’ fathers won’t face... I wondered what new pattern this would kick-off for me as a father, as a man. It got me pumped, so I turned to face death.

I walked down to the place everyone had jumped from, and peered over the edge looking for the right place to land. Corrina had turned away. She sat sulking on a stone, facing the other direction. It made me sad that she might miss my moment of raging glory, tearing through the veil of fear, seeing into the heart of my own masculinity... 

Taking some practice steps I got a feel for the leaping energy I would have to push with when I left the rock ledge to pencil dive into the bardo, only to arise, baptized into some new life. Honestly, I live for this. If I don’t have a breakthrough experience a few times a year I go stir-crazy inside my soul.

So, there it was... my moment of departure. Camera girl giving me a thumbs up. Teresa arrived from below to see me off. I rocked back and forth, dialing up my adrenaline, revving my testosterone, thinking how smart I was for not just exploding my circuits, but workin up to it...

And there’s Corrina looking up at me, shoulders slumped forward, pouty lips and a fluttering heart...

Everything was lined up. My trajectory was plotted. I was tuning into my intuition, feeling whether I needed to be cocked a little more this way or that... I was just gonna trust it. Trust myself. When I felt like it was right, I’d let my gut carry me into the fleeting moment of abyss, sweep me into my next life-time. My next incarnation...

And Corrina.

Thoughts bucked through my mind. “It’s scary, yes, but I know I can push myself through my fear.” “I can always come back and do it with my buddies.” “If I don’t do this, what will it say about me?” “No, I have to do it! I said I was gonna do it, and here I go... dammit!”

I felt into my heart. My intuition slowed me down. I followed it. I did what I felt. 

I sat down.

Don't be reckless with other people's hearts, don't put up with those who are reckless with yours. ~Mary Schmich

After a few minutes Teresa sits next to me and, like the incredibly powerful woman she is, puts words to what I’m realizing for the first time in my life. By letting Corrina know her heart is more important to me than my transient adventures and epiphanies, however spiritual they may seem, I’m setting a pattern in motion in her that will alter the course of her life.

And mine. 

When I got to the bottom of the rock formation Corrina was waiting for me on the other side of the stream. 

We met in the middle and she held me in an extra-long, extra-silent hug.

The man I became... was not the man I had expected. 

Follow the child. ~Maria Montessori

I’m so grateful or these teaching moments. Children have a way of teaching that eludes me, until it’s upon me. My own Circle of Freedom and Responsibility got turned on its head. 

I didn’t know what to do, so I wrote this post to share.

Actually, finishing up this post a week later, I’m still a bit shaken up by the experience. If you know the feeling, please chime in. I could really use the support... as I’m sure we all could.

To Your Enlightenment Experience!

Craig

Creator EnlightenedChild.com

Be sure to join our Facebook Fan Page as well!

~

If you're enjoying these posts, and would like to learn more about Enlightened Child, please join my email list. That way, you'll never miss a post, and you'll be the first to know about special offers and opportunities... Feel free to share these posts with your friends, as well!

* Email
First Name
Number of Children
Ages of Children
	* = Required Field
Spam is Un-American.

Who Am I When I'm Living Most Authentically? (Reflections on Burning Man)

One of my favorite mentors and friends is Alexis Martin Neely. She is a legal, marketing, business and celebrity expert (with the income to back it up) and she's unabashed about living her life Authentically.

She recently returned from Burning Man with her family, and shared her experiences on her monthly call: Mindset, Motivation, Marketing & Money You can fan her at http://www.facebook.com/PlayBigWithAlexis (click this link to see a picture of her in pink dreads, bikini top and WWII fighter pilot goggles ;-)

She asked such great questions about 20 minutes in to the call that I literally had to disconnect and journal. She talked about how 50,000 people spend 10 days in the desert under horrendous conditions for one common purpose - to live their lives as authentically as possible. Why I have yet to attend is one of the 11th mysteries of the world... maybe Rochester needs my authenticity more than Black Rock City.

Her battery of questions began with: Who would you be if you were living most authentically, how would you feel, what would you be doing... so I ran with it.

Here's an excerpt from my journal. It's rough, but isn't that more authentic?

Living most Authentically with Who I TRULY Am…

Be: Who AM I?

I am a fragment of the spiritual heart of pure light that many call God. I am here for only one reason – to be a vessel and conduit for that light, attracting others together so that our light can grow and we can all see more clearly the reality of who we are so that the world can eventually transcend its own darkness and a renaissance of spiritual consciousness can “tip” the balance towards a world of great harmony and joyous co-creation with our like-minded reflections in the world of manifestation. So we can ALL live authentically, and we can all experience wholeness and fulfillment, and on THAT we can build a world of great artistic complexity and beauty.

I feel whole, connected, fully in love and reveling in the joy of living my passion, being seen and appreciated by others who really marvel at the way I’m bringing my vision into the world for all to share.

Do: How do I do this? And How do I generate income?

The way I do it is by creating art and sharing it with the world. Then teaching others what I know, and connecting those who are interested with those who I learned from so that we call enjoy a greater understanding of ourselves, our relationships, and our world. From this, money pours in to me from patrons, students and interns I work with who help me steward this arc.

Have: What do I have as a result of living in alignment with my core Authenticity?

I have everything I need and more, so much abundance that I am able to share my work with the world freely and feel like there are zero restrictions on my time and my freedom to create and to give from my deep soul.

So, what about YOU!!! How would you be living if you were totally coming from your most Authentic Self... at least more often, if not most of the time?

Very curious to read your responses!!

Enjoy ;-]


To Your Enlightenment Experience!

Craig

Want a free print of the 'Realized' Buddha collage I made in 1998? Enter your email here: www.enlightenedchild.com

be sure to join our Facebook Fan Page as well!

Holy Crow - Wireless Electricity is HERE!!!

Watch this video - he actually demos untethered power on a TV and iPhone!

The only thing I might add is that the story I heard went something like: JP Morgan was the financier of the Tesla tower on Long Island... he had it summarily destroyed once he learned of the purpose - Free electricity around the globe.

Corporate Policy is to put a meter on EVERYTHING.

Notice how the demo in this video requires access to the same power grid we're already on - it just distributes the power locally in an untethered fashion.

What about TESLA!!! He dismantled his engineering notes and distributed them among a couple dozen nations and said, "When you can play nice, you can have my secrets to unlimited free power anywhere in the world."






To Your Enlightenment Experience!

Craig

Want a free print of the 'Realized' Buddha collage I made in 1998? Enter your email here: www.enlightenedchild.com

be sure to join our Facebook Fan Page as well!

Montessori is NOT Self-Help...

Back in college I read a lot of Spiritual and Self-Help type books. I was interested in growing and becoming a better person... or stopping the gnawing existential pain I kicked up in the process.

When I got into Sales I was pleased to discover a culture of personal and professional development. Guys like Zig Ziglar and Jim Rohn were instrumental in helping me ground my mind in this worldly reality and get a grip on who I am becoming as a man. Mentors and friends helped as well. But ultimately it all comes down to experience.

Since I never took a marketing or finance class... EVER... I had to teach myself these things through experience (aka repeated failure). I started businesses and made sales calls and did all the things the gurus said. And I've gotten much better. But something still nags at me... about the potential I have within me that I fear may never see the light of day.

Reading some Maria Montessori this morning (founder of the Montessori schools - AMI) I thought back to my two years as a Montessori kid. They made sense. I grew and understood how I was growing. I engaged in playful mastery of the material and I was recognized as a young, developing soul. It was joyous times.

The chapter I read this morning talked about how to really mess up a child for life. Luckily I spent the rest of my schooling in institutions that read THAT manual and my jaw dropped in astonishment at the aftermath and how it has played out in my life.

When I say Montessori is NOT Self-Help, what I mean is that as I read the chapter and thought about the impact these negative schooling experiences have had on my life, I realized that the next page would not be some treatise or meditation exercise designed to free my soul from the bondage of psychological anguish these naughty naughty institutions have inflicted upon me.

No. There would be no Self-Help epiphany today.

What I see very clearly, though, is a need to assist parents and teachers in honoring the soul of the child and not foisting the habituated traumas we acquired in our own schooling and socialization on our children, but truly "Following the Child" and learning something of our own humanity in their innocence and joy.

Montessori is a recipe for a child who will not need much, if any, self-help work. There will always been an edge to grow to, but the negative feelings that we were saddled with in childhood need not hinder that growth or create mind-boggling challenges that make us say things like, "I'm afraid of success." Something is wrong with a culture that instills fear of completion and the joy of accomplishment in its populous.

What can we do to help our children grow up free from the weeds of the antiquated schooling and socialization process?

Cheers,

Craig

to see original post and all my social media links, visit: www.enlightenedchild.com

Oh Baby, That's the Ticket!

You can't ride without ticket... You can't see the show without a ticket... You can't get where you're goin without a ticket!

So, what's your ticket?

Maybe you're a teacher or a CPA or sales person. Whatever it is, the thing you do well, that gets you paid, gets you through doors that others can't pass through... that's your ticket.

Everyone needs at least one ticket. Life is about taking yourself where you wanna go. It's about having a compass and a direction. It's about overcoming obstacles and challenges to realizing your true nature. It's about exploring and experiencing and expressing all that life has to offer within, without and through you.

So, what's your ticket?

I didn't have a ticket for a long time. I had pieces of a ticket. I had a little of this and little of that... but I didn't have a TICKET. I didn't have something I could use to get me around in this world.

With a Philosophy Degree, minor in Art and another in Religion... that didn't really open a lot of doors, or get me where I was doing. I had no interest in the corporate world, or college for that matter. So, to the best of my ability I set myself up to NOT be admitted into the long, grey line of American manhood.

After Corrina was born, I realized I needed a ticket. I needed something to give me access to the world where people make money and take care of themselves and their families. I was substitute teaching - I was hanging around, but I didn't have a ticket. Teaching is my thing, but institutionalized schooling is not. So I bailed on that path.

Sales welcomed me with open arms. The world can always use another hack salesman. After a while of monkeying with that I realized it wasn't a ticket unless I could ACTUALLY sell something. Starting a business seemed like a ticket, but it took so long to figure it out. Finally, after moving to Chicago and getting involved in the Real Estate boom, I found my ticket.

I'm a serial entrepreneur with a sales and marketing bent. If there's a market, and I can live with the product, I can sell it.

That's my ticket.

It gets me the money I need to get where and what I want in my life. It gets me backstage into some pretty cool meetings and businesses that I would never have access to otherwise. It takes me to cool seminars and conferences where I meet incredibly powerful and intelligent people who also have a Sales/Marketing ticket... I couldn't be happier.

Here's the moral... it took me nearly 30 years to find my ticket. That's a long time. That's a long time being a scared, naive kid with no ticket. That's a lot of missed shows, a lot of missed trains... not the way I want my kid to grow up.

Most of what I've learned about sales and marketing could be taught to a 3rd or a 6th grader fairly easily. Especially when we get talking about information marketing and online businesses. Teens could acquire a lifetime ticket to ride by simply laying off the XBox 360 a few hours per day and learning the principles of marketing and internet sales.

Getting that ticket means your child will be able to go see shows, take rides, meet cool people, get an education, travel and explore... Whether it's sales or anything else, make sure your child knows that they will need a ticket, and help them start figuring out what that may be for them. It takes years to get a handle on it - no point in waiting to figure it out until after school and all the pressure that brings.

Better to get it handled early, so that the 20's are a time of radical self-exploration with a base of financial freedom that affords educational experiences impossible to obtain through school.


Cheers,

Craig

to see original post and all my social media links, visit: www.enlightenedchild.com

How To Get Your Child Thinking Entrepreneurially...

I think a lot of parents, especially those who had it rough growing up, tend to try to make life easier on their kids.

To a certain degree this makes sense. On the other side of the scale, what's wrong with teaching kids about the 1st Noble Truth: Life is Suffering. We can't always get what we want, and if we are conditioned as children (as we almost all are) to become attached to the outcome we desire, it's only going to set us up for frustration and failure in the end. Teaching kids that they can always get what they want - crying or otherwise - is a recipe for disaster as they grow up. Better to suffer and understand the nature of suffering by adulthood than to grow up sheltered and then be hit by reality after school.

What about teaching kids a work ethic? I mean, I know there's a lot of advice about allowance and I admit I haven't read all the research. I've been told kids should get a certain amount of money regardless of chores. The thinking goes: Kids need to learn how to spend money... or something to that effect.

I take a very different approach. To me, money has to be a reflection of what my child has done to consciously go out and obtain money. Washing the dishes, sweeping the floor... these are just part of being on the team. Corrina likes to eat, she likes a roof over her head... there's nothing wrong with chipping in a little with the mealtime chores, and making her bed. I don't get paid to feed myself and take care of my kid. Maybe people on welfare do. Maybe that's a welfare mentality - that someone should provide for me simply because I'm breathing and taking up space. Not my kid.

She used to blog every week - she would listen to something by Jim Rohn or Brian Tracy and then blog about the simple idea or Principle and translate it into kid-speak (www.markiding.com). When she felt like stopping I agreed because, as far as I know, every labor contract in America is "at will" so there's no use in forcing her to do something she doesn't want to do. It's not realistic - it's not preparing her for life in capitalist America.

(Whether the state becomes fascist in her life-time remains to be seen - so we'll prepare her for the best...)

Of course, she does not earn her allowance either. Her mom wants to waffle. She wants me to just give her the money anyway. I refuse. She may give Corrina money - and I feel that would be a mistake, but I also intuit that Corrina will start to se the contrast in philosophies and eventually make the right choice.

As for working kids too hard and not letting them play and be kids... well, for thousands and thousands of years kids grew up milking cows and tilling soil and getting eggs from the hen house before the crack of dawn. There was no Sponge-Bob, there was no Cartoon Network or Doritos or Pop-Tarts.

To me, it's red flag when parents are losing the Humanity of their children for the convenience of television and snack foods. Our bodies are wired up the same way they were for millenia before these recent products became available.

So, toss out the kiddie-crack and give your kid a broom and then when they come begging for a quarter tell them it's part of being on the team, and they'll lend a hand if they want to be fed tonight (feed them vegetables and whole foods)... then kick them outside to play in the sun and tell them not to ask for money until they come up with something over and above the basic chores they should be doing anyway. Reading a book is good - if it's a challenging book and maybe if they write a book report. Washing the car, completing some additional math or grammar equations... anything more than they are expected to do. Anything to get them thinking entrepreneurially - looking for opportunities to serve and contribute more than they are asked.

As Zig Ziglar says - there are no traffic jams on the extra mile.

As always - love to hear your feedback!


Cheers,

Craig

to see original post and all my social media links, visit: www.enlightenedchild.com

What Do 21st Century Knowledge Workers Need To Know if They Are Only 13 Still...

First of all, MOST of the fundamentals still apply. Gravity will get ya, and so will a lot of other truisms about life. so stay keen for them and collect them like jewels.

Secondly, a lot of what you hear floating around that passes for advice or common sense is DEAD NUTS WRONG. You gotta be prepared to make up your own mind on EVERY SINGLE ITEM of Information or Emotion that crosses your radar field. That means you have to have a well-tuned mind and an ability to recognize patterns.

Pattern recognition is huge. The sooner you learn to generalize with pattern recognition, the more time you save yourself figuring out that if you keep doing what you have always done you will keep getting what you've been getting all along.

So learn to recognize patterns and think in constructs. You have to actively build your philosophy of life, and that's why I recommend starting with the fundamentals - Jim Rohn is a good place to start.

Then finally, make sure you are in touch with your genius. Know the answer to or be asking these three questions at all times until you have a lock on the place they all overlap. Then DIG DEEP! Life is short and you gotta take your chances when you see them line up in your sites!

"Until one is committed, there is hesitancy, the chance to draw back. Concerning all acts of initiative (and creation), there is one elementary truth, the ignorance of which kills countless ideas and splendid plans: that the moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. A whole stream of events issues from the decision, raising in one's favor all manner of unforeseen incidents and meetings and material assistance, which no man could have dreamed would have come his way. Whatever you can do, or dream you can do, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now."
~Goethe

Here are the 3 questions:

1.) What can I be the best in the world at (hint: there's Riches in Niches)

2.) What do I LOVE doing so much I'd do it for no pay at all. (or, if you had a $100MM inheritance...)

3.) How can I monetize what I know and deliver it in a way that supports my purpose and lifestyle?

When you have an answer to those questions, then you'll be free like Neo in the Matrix!

Cheers,

Craig

to see original post and all my social media links, visit: www.enlightenedchild.com

Are You a Government-Issue Parent?

What are the attributes of an exceptional parent?

A few big obvious areas to begin our exploration would be:

1.) Moral and heart-connected relations.
2.) Insightful about the child's development needs.
3.) Grounded in the present socio-economic realities affecting freedom and success.

Most parents, the standard, government-issue type, will abdicate the majority of these functions to the State and Schooling system, the Church, or the kids on the corner and whoever they are influenced by.

The State is so far out of touch with your child's individual developmental needs that to trust the schooling system with the soul of your child is like trusting your lamb to a pack of hyenas. That's not to say lessons can't be learned in schooling systems. Just relative to what your child is capable of, it seems a tragedy to allow a brilliant mind to be dumbed down by an insidious process of socialization that itself is no longer grounded in present socio-economic reality.

In the 21st Century, assembly line work is no longer the primary occupation of school graduates. The modern schooling system is a muddled adaptation of an outmoded industrial revolution era system that taught reading, writing, 'rithmetic. What our kids need is a way to clearly translate ideas and connections into profits.

An exceptional parent is going to do what it takes to get their child the true education required to thrive in the world ahead.

"...your old road is rapidly aging. Get out of the new one if you can't lend a hand, for the times they are a changing."

So how do we give our kids a 21st Century Education?

Or are you one of those "government-issue parents" too?

Cheers,

Craig

to see original post and all my social media links, visit: www.enlightenedchild.com

How To Give Your Teenager the Best Secondary Education for FREE!

We all want our kids to have better than we did.

My parents grew up financially strained. They were the first to go to college. They wanted me to have the best education I could get because, in their world, that was the key to a fulfilling life.

In the 21st Century, technology is accelerating so rapidly that information and communication technology is burgeoning on "psychic" (just think of Google) and the iPhone.

Social Media sites are not some novelty or a past-time any more. I rarely email anymore. The bulk of my communication is managed on Facebook and Text Messaging (SMS).

If Markets Are Conversations, then social media is bringing authenticity back to the marketplace. Companies and Professionals will thrive as they reveal their inner workings. How will they do this?

The clients and markets they serve will call B.S. on their social media profiles and they will lose business. Children have terrific B.S. detectors and access to social media as they enter the marketplace will give them a decided advantage when it comes to making major life choices.

For instance: Should I buy this product? Should I work with this business? Should I trust this person? What does my tribe suggest when it comes to...?

These questions are about authenticity and how we represent ourselves in the marketplace. No more anonymous companies, no more faceless internet marketers. The 21st Century market will require an entirely different set of skills for your children to thrive.

In fact, embracing and demonstrating authenticity on social media will be crucial for any professional who wants to thrive in the 21st Century. That includes Boomers and even reluctant or non-marketing oriented Gen-x'ers who have a vision for a business and could really use the inexpensive exposure for their business that social media provides.

To that end, a subset of the Enlightened Child Curriculum is a teen module I coined the Entrepreneurial Academy. It's a program designed to mentor teens with a vision. If they have a vision, they have a sense of what they wanna do, and a reason why they want to do it. This, combined with dependability and competence, is a model student for this program.

What a mentee will learn is:
1.) Timeless Principles of marketing and entrepreneurship
2.) 21st Century knowledge-work systems for getting thing done
3.) Social Media development and cutting edge techniques for improving sales
4.) How to schmooze with clients (who are Experts in their fields) and build a network
5.) How to absorb as much wisdom from each client while helping share the Expertise with the world in a way that is mutually lucrative
6.) Lifestyle Design strategies that create time and financial freedom (to do Good)
7.) The Basic Moral Intuition - Giving Back by Leveraging Freedom to Do Good & Marketing talent to create a Social Media Buzz around real issues and real solutions that ARE working

Basically, the Internship (as my Facebook pal Kevin Munro called it) would consist of me training the mentee how to set up various social media sites and then integrate them together to create a marketing funnel. This frees up my time to do more R&D on the Enlightened Child Philosophy, write, travel, teach... We all earn a handsome salary, and design our lifestyles to help us life our Purpose in life.

Beats hanging around playing xBox all day.

Once a child reaches late teens they should be financially liberated to the point where any educational experience they desire - from college semesters with specific teachers to $5,000 seminars, workshops or coaching periods they don't need to worry about money to live on or invest in the education. They should be flush from relatively passive cashflow.

By that age, they will have Internet businesses, promoted via social media very inexpensively, based on the training and experience they got interning with me at Social Media Maverick.

To read more about the Social Media Maverick Marketing Philosophy and how you can get your teen involved go to my Blog, or enter your name and email on the right of this blog.

Cheers,

Craig

to see original post and all my social media links, visit: www.enlightenedchild.com

Where I'm Goin Today...

In a half hour I leave for Boulder, CO to kick off a 108 day Men's Challenge that will focus on Health, Consciousness, Income, Relationships and some other cool stuff that I don't even know about yet.

I'm looking forward to having both a coach and a cohort of men to take this journey with. It was originally going to be a year - and I was all in. 108 days is a long time. There's a lot of space to cover in a field of time that large.

Making the process conscious by kicking things off with a weekend intensive, then weekly group calls, and some coaching calls sprinkled in... should be a fantastic learning vehicle and accountability support for taking my life to the next level in all 4 of the above areas.

To me, life would be a lot simpler if we just contextualized our education and socialization process around mastering these 4 areas of life - health, wealth, relationships and vision.

Art, Morals, Science...

Why does it have to be more complicated and fragmented than that?

Having a mentor that can help a child discover the truth, beauty and goodness in each area of life and a cohort of peers to share and feedback the experience with is such a powerful model for learning. Adventure, experience, mind-blowing times for every age and interest...

That's a vision I'd like to see manifested.

That's why I'm going to the Revolutionary Man: 108 Day Challenge. http://www.revolutionaryman.com/contest.html

I'll keep you posted ;-)

Cheers,

Craig

to see original post and all my social media links, visit: www.enlightenedchild.com

Don't Miss!!!

There's a lot of wisdom in this advice I learned from Jim Rohn.

He says, "Don't Miss! ...don't miss the show, don't miss the party, don't miss the game"

So much of my younger life I spent in a bit of a shell. Not sure of myself or what I wanted from life, I played it safe. I stayed home. I kept my need for adventure under wraps.

Now that I've spread my wings once or twice, I have a sense of who I am and what I want. I know what I like because I've tried a lot of things. They haven't all been that greatest of experiences, but I've corrected course based on the feedback I got.

Monday night I had an opportunity to see a band rolling through town. I wanted to go. I met the band, they seemed cool... my friend has been raving about them for weeks... and I missed the show. I fell asleep and didn't wake up in time to go.

So last night we drove 2 hours to Ithaca and saw them (and another really cool band) and I didn't miss the show. I felt great about simply not missing the show. I was there. I saw that band. Those memories are mine. Those pictures, those are genuine article. And the band was INCREDIBLE!!! Check them out - http://www.myspace.com/theseunited

What made the difference between me now and me 10 years ago?

Somewhere along the way I reached some philosophical point where I was somehow different.

Maybe I discovered who I am. Maybe I decided what I want. Maybe I delved into life because it became more painful to stand on the sidelines watching than to go out and play a few hands of my own.

I wonder if you've had any kind of shift like that... where you looked back and said, "Wow, how did that happen?"

Seriously, let me know...

Cheers,

Craig

to see original post and all my social media links, visit: www.enlightenedchild.com

3 Types of Freedom

There are 3 Types of Freedom I have explored in my life.

Much of my mental energy in adult life has been exhausted seeking personal development material that works for me so I can experience more freedom in these 3 areas.

It has seemed to me for some time that the material that works best is very simple and could easily be taught to children from an early age.

Yet it's not.

So it has become my life passion to teach and mentor children of any age into the 3 freedoms of a great life.

What are the 3 freedoms?

1.) Physical & Health Freedom - Are you free to move about as you please? Are you free from ailments and illness that constricts your freedoms?

2.) Social Freedom - Do you feel confident in any social situation, able to lead and persuade toward a greater benefit for all participants you touch?

3.) Abundance - Wealth is its own unique kind of freedom. Money doesn't set you free - what you DO with it does.

These, to me, are the 3 cores of curriculum.

That said, I'm open to your feedback and suggestions.

As I always like to quote: None of us is as smart as all of us.

Cheers,

Craig

to see original post and all my social media links, visit: www.enlightenedchild.com