I am pleased to announce that with much thought, preparation, planning, and hard work, that my personal website is now the home for my blog! The blog here will be left as an archive for those wanting to see my first blog. You can visit my new and much improved website by clicking the link below:

Jeremy Johnson

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I know I am in a transitionary phase with my drjerm website, but my mind was opened and I have to get this down for people to read. Enjoy!

As children, we have an excitement of life, possibility, and adventure. As Edmond Dontes in ‘The Count Of Monte Cristo’ said to his unknown to him at the time son, “Everything is an adventure when you’re young.”

But over time, dissapointment, frustration, and being told ‘No’ countless times begins to destroy that excitement. We become destitute and accepting of a life of struggle and stagnation.

Let me ask you something. Have you ever wanted to do something you thought would be a good idea? This can be anything from going on a walk to inventing something. How many of you had this idea many years ago and it is still in you head? How many of you have done something about it in the many years time you have had the idea?

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that many of you still have the idea in your head but have not done much about it. And this doesn’t mean you are a bad person. It just means that your idea does not fit your current model and belief system. So you may be wondering, “Hey this is my idea. It’s a good idea! How does it not fit in my belief system?”

The answer to this is as simple as it is profound. Each person has a view of the world and themselves, along with specific rules that govern their behavior and responses to stimulus. For example, someone who believes strongly that animals should be treated with great respect is going to react very differently to the news of Michael Vick having dog fights than someone who just couldn’t care less about animals.

I’m not going to go into great detail about how each person attains the beliefs and rules for their lives. But the basics of it is that what you think about and focus on is what creates your beliefs. If I spend my time thinking about how great my wife Heidi is (which I do) as opposed to thinking about what a nuisance she is (which she’s not), I am going to have a very different relationship with her depending on how I focus on her.

The problem is we create expectations, rules, and guidelines about how things should be and if anything does not fit this specific mold, we begin to treat it as a negative thing. The answer for you is to create different focus patterns related to yourself and the things you want to do in life. Let me give you an example.

You’ve wanted to write a children’s book for the past 10 years. Let’s say it is about two rabbits that like to play in the yard. But all you’ve done over time is talk about it. Maybe you’ve thought about what a few of the pages might look like. You may have even written a scirbbled draft of the book. But the steps to get the book in print have not been taken.

What is the chance of this book being published and presented to the world? Very close to zero! Unless there is a shift and change in your belief system.

Most people’s beliefs and focus for life is the accumulation of events of their entire life and their response to those events to the present time. The problem is most people’s responses to events are just their initial reactions and are given no thought or reasoning to what their response should be. As an example, I’ve always loathed balloon’s popping. And this is because I heard one pop as a kid and I was extremely startled by it. As this happened over time, I formed a very rigid belief that I hate balloon’s popping (as a side note, I also formed the belief that I hate thunder and lightning). The problem is until recently, I never took the time to think why I was reacting that way – I just hated balloon’s and that was it.

Questions: “Can I sit in a room with a balloon that pops and be perfectly fine? Can I sit in a room where there is lightning with thunder booms going on and be perfectly fine?”

The answer is absolutely (unless the lightning is very close or the balloon is right by my ear – and these cases happen what once or twice in a lifetime?). So I’ve unkowingly put a restriction on myself that has no merit. If I now focus on how cool balloon’s are and how awesome it is to see and hear a thunderstorm, I am going to form very different and much less limiting beliefs about these two things. And this is actually something I’m doing now. Whenever I see balloon’s, I think about how awesome they are. When a thunderstorm starts, I immediately force myself to think, “cool – this is going to be awesome.”

And the mind is an interesting thing. Whatever you feed it, it begins to believe. And if you can smash through stubborness and habit, you can quickly begin to form beliefs about the things you know you should do. And when those beliefs become reinforced enough, you will feel pulled to do them. Is it not true? Some of you reading this may be very religious while others are not. And either of these is ok. But each of those beliefs pulls you to either be active in a religion, or to refrain from activity in a religion.

You can use this to your advantage now. You can examine a typical day and everything that happened. It helps to just write down specifically everything you did in the day. This does require you to focus and remember what you did. However, I can help with this. Most people wake up without a plan. They go through the day just doing what ever they think needs to be done. Those needs include running errands, cleaning, going to work, and honoring commitments to other people. If there is not much that needs to be done, they then revert to entertainment as something to occupy their time. This includes movies, television, and games of every form (online, board, card, etc…).

The problem is that your awesome dream or idea likely occupies a very microscopic portion, if any, of your day and therefore is out of your belief system. This is because you do not reinforce it very often. It isn’t part of you. You are not active with it. If you simply replaced an hour of the day where you were watching TV or playing a game with time where you just sat and reinforced your belief with thought and talk to yourself, over time you would be pulled to start putting into action your idea. How many of you are following what I’m saying? Our actions come dirctly from what we’ve reinforced within ourselves and spent our time focusing on. And this doesn’t even include the evidence of putting your physical body in a peak state while thinking of it!

In a nutshell, this is about a life skill many don’t take the time to hone. And that is the reinforcement of new and powerful beliefs about the things we most deeply desire and want for ourselves. Insert meaningful and specific time daily to just think to yourself how awesome these things are. But here’s the catch that I hope some of you will be able to see. You have to first enforce new beliefs that what I’m saying is actually something that is worth doing! So spend time each day thinking about how awesome and smart I am. This will pull you to do what I say. I’m kidding… only slightly. But I know if you spend time focusing on and enforcing new and powerful beliefs that you will start making time for the wonderful things that deep down inside you know you can do!

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Hello everyone. I’ve been asked the question, “What is the Current State of Drjerm?” many times. I wanted to clear this up for those of you who didn’t read through my last blog post, the meeting of my imaginary master mind. It was made very clear to me that I needed to make a radical shift in the way I am approaching my DrJerm website and DrJerm blog.

 

That radical shift is something I am seeking out. In addition to that, I am writing a fantasy novel that is taking most of my time. But I digress. The current state is that until I have a compelling and extremely value packed change for my website and blog, I am not going to be adding much new content. Sorry to those of you who are regular readers. Fortunately, there is still a wealth of information contained here on this blog and on my website at http://www.drjerm.com.

 

The point is, I need to have a high level of uniqueness and value for my blog and website here. That is what I’ve learned. I have useful information. But that is not enough. There needs to be something more. I am in the process of figuring out what that something more is. I am not sure how long it will take. But it will happen eventually. And you will be blown away by what my blog and website turn into – I guarantee it.

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I had a meeting with my imaginary Master Mind tonight. I want to share with you the results of it. It was a bit strange at first, trying to coherently see what was going on. But I was able to get some things out of it. Here they are:

 

 

Master Mind Meeting With:
Anthony Robbins, Wayne Dyer, Lisa Irby, Dwayne Johnson, Larry Bird, Oprah Winfrey, Dr. Phil, J.K. Rowling, Stephanie Meyer

 

(I have abbreviated names with initials when each person is speaking. Also, this is all from my head alone. Nothing said here has been actually stated to me by any individual here.)

 

Surrounding a large, elaborate conference room table, my counselor’s sit. Many of them are talking with each other. As I walk in, everyone becomes quiet. Everyone except for Anthony Robbins.

 

A.R.: There’s the man. You’ve got some guts bringing us all here together. Before you start, I want you to prove yourself right now. Prove to all of us why we should sit here, listen to you, and give you instruction.

 

I’m a bit shocked at this. I was hoping to be able to get a few words in first. All eyes are on me as I think for a moment and then speak from my heart.

 

Me: Proof is a subjective thing. I don’t have much in the way of fame, fortune, or significant accomplishments in business to share with you all. I am a husband, father, and current employee as a web developer for a leading Genealogical website. I would love to sit here and try and boast and get the approval of all of you. But here is the real fact. All of you have accomplished much more than I have in your business/entrepreneurial lives. The truth is I am just like the masses of people who have not achieved great success.

 

Me: I do believe I have a very high level of intelligence. I am resourceful and dedicated. But no, I cannot prove to any of you why you should spend another second listening to me.

 

Lisa Irby chimes in.

 

L.I.: This man has been honest with us. He’s not trying to sugar coat who he is. I think that’s a good start if you ask me.

 

Oprah nods at her in agreement. Dr. Wayne Dyer is the next to speak.

 

W.D.: It is good that you are honest with yourself and us. But for you to get any help from us here, you must be able to clearly explain what drives you. What are you trying to accomplish and get out of life? What is your real reason for having us here?

 

I take a moment to really think deeply and find the utmost intense desires of my heart.

 

Me: I must break the cycle in my family. Many of my family struggles with depression, weight/health problems, and financial stability. I seek to create a new branch of the Johnson family. One that realizes that wealth and prosperity in this life is not a bad thing and is achievable. I see so many who talk about wealth like it is some distant land unable to be reached. I am frustrated by this. I seek to create a wealth in my life that will provide tremendous opportunities for my family and give me the ability to help my family and others far more than I could otherwise. As I think, this is the main reason I do the things I do.

 

Larry Bird is twidling his thumbs. He seems kind of bored. I ask him if he has anything he wants to add.

 

L.B.: You’re not dedicated enough. I spent hours and hours before and after practice and even on game days working on my game. How much time do you spend trying to accomplish what you said you want to do?

 

I think for a moment on this.

 

Me: I have a full time job. When I’m at home, it’s usually an hour or two each day.

 

Larry Bird laughs.

 

L.B.: You don’t have what it takes. I’m looking into your eyes right now. You only half care about doing what you say you want to do. Otherwise you’d have something to show for it.

 

I think of what to say. This comes to mind.

 

Me: You’re right, here’s what I have to show for it right now. I have a fantasy novel I am on the 2nd edit of right now. I just made $100 from Google Adsense on three websites over the last year and a half. I am on my 3rd round of the P90X extreme fitness program, which I have stuck with since much earlier in the year.

 

Larry Bird stops me.

 

L.B.: Prove it, let’s see.

 

The women in the room are suddenly much more curious. I have to admit, I wasn’t expecting this to happen. I remove my shirt and flex for everyone and share what I have done physically.

 

Me: I was fifty pounds overweight a couple of years ago. I lost the weight by making a choice to weigh myself morning and night and watch my portions and focus more on healthy eating. Earlier this year I saw P90X and decided that I was going to get it and do it no matter what. And I did. I have great physical results to show for it – and those results aren’t even as good as they could be, but I am still satisifed with them.

 

L.B.: Why didn’t you share this earlier?

 

Me: I didn’t think about it.

 

Dr. Phil butts in.

 

D.P.: You said your family struggles with weight and health issues. Have any of them done P90X?

 

Me: I have an older sister in her mid 40′s that exercises regularly. And a twin brother who has also lost 50 pounds recently. And two older brother’s who have lost hundreds of pounds. But generally most of them still struggle.

 

D.P.: Another time when it is more appropriate we may want to talk about your family. But I want to tell everyone here that what you’ve done is amazing. If you look at the health in America, the percentage of people that have achieved the level of fitness you have are a minority. And you’ve stuck with it for over six months now. This tells me you are mentally mature. Guys and gals, this very thing is worth our attention. We have someone here who is dedicated.

 

Dwayne Johnson, who has been strangely quiet, smiles and speaks.

 

D.J.: I saw in a blog post and a video you made that you at one time were planning on meeting me. Now that you’ve met me, was it worth it?

 

I am amused by this statement.

 

Me: It’s great, but I realized it wasn’t what my focus should be.

 

D.J.: Good for you man. I’ve been listening to what you are saying. I know what it’s like to struggle. I slept on mattresses playing in the Canadian Football league and scrounged for food. So I know what it’s like to not have found the success you are seeking. But you have found some success, don’t cut yourself short. You’ve done P90X, achieved amazing results. You are married with a great family. And you’ve secured them with a well paying job with benefits. Give yourself some credit.

 

Me: It’s not enough.

 

D.J.: You’ll get your break. But it won’t be until you’ve gone through a little more pain than you have. You need to dig deeper man. If you really want what you say you do, you need to take it to another level.

 

Anthony Robbins nods.

 

A.R.: You’ve got some things right. You have the desire, you’re dedicated, you’re willing to put the time in. But if there is one thing I had to say you need some friggin help with, it would be your planning and strategy. I’m trying to find your plan and strategy, and I don’t see it. To this point, you have been guessing. You say you’re intelligent. Put a plan together and create a strategy and show it!

 

Lisa Irby responds.

 

L.I.: Just to add to that, you talked about your websites and making $100 with Adsense over a year and a half. I’ve seen your sites. You have a good message. But you’re not doing anything to set yourself apart. Why would someone go to your site as opposed to something such as zenhabits.net or stevepavlina.com? These are two well accomplished sites run by individuals who are working in the area you are. If you want your sites to be a major source of your wealth, you are really going to have to come up with a plan and strategy like Mr. Robbins said that will set your sites apart and draw great interest in them. Otherwise, you are wasting your time.

 

Oprah likes this.

 

O.W.: Girl I’m proud of you. You want to come on my show?

 

I laugh out loud.

 

J.K. Rowling and Stephanie Meyer now take the conversation.

 

J.K.: You say you are writing a fantasy book. And you’re on your second draft. How well do you know your characters?

 

Me: Hmm. Pretty well I think. I’m on the 2nd revision and have a good idea of their personalities and history.

 

J.K.: If you want your book to do well, you must know your characters so well that you could play any of them in a movie flawlessly. You must know their histories, mannerisms, likes, dislikes – everything. You must create a compelling and deep rooted emotional story for your characters. The reader must feel deep inside like they know and understand your characters. This will get people to talk about your book. If you do not, it will fail.

 

Me: Great, thanks, I am creating a biography sheet of each character. But I will spend more time getting to know them, and refining my novel’s deep emotional roots.

 

Stephanie Meyer now speaks to me.

 

S.M.: There’s relationships in your book right?

 

I snicker.

 

Me: Yeah, and I’m going to confess that I need to really polish that part of it up.

 

S.M.: Create a deep and mysterious romance. Make it your own without copying anyone. If you do this, your book will soar. And you can thank me with an autographed copy because I will want to read all about it!

 

Me: Ok, point taken. It is getting late and I need to get some rest. You all have been helpful. I have a lot to work on…

 

I actually start to think about the monumental task I have of really creating the wealth and life I want for myself and family. I know it won’t be easy. I start to get teary-eyed.

 

Oprah and Wayne Dyer walk up next to me.

 

O.W.: We’ve all gone through this. The doubt, the fear, the wondering if things will work out. If you have faith Jeremy and really create a sound plan of action, and dig down to your deepest desires with persistence, you will succeed far more than you can envision. I see within you a grand potential. But it is going to be up to you to tap into it and gain the reward. You are going to have to want it so badly that nothing can stop you. Work on how badly you want it. Capture the key points of what we’ve told you today. You need to plan, strategize, create several compelling elements in your novel, and find a way to make your websites stand out so that others want to visit them. You’re intelligent. I’m sure you will find a way.

 

W.D.: Take time to meditate by yourself. See what inspiration comes to you as you do this.

 

Lisa Irby whispers to me.

 

L.I.: Redesign your drjerm website and blog. Change your approach. Find a way to reach people that isn’t being done.

 

Everyone beings to fade away, the meeting is over.

 

—–

 

This is fascinating. I realize some things. Drjerm.com and Blog.drjerm.com are being put in lock down until I have something unique and much more valuable to share with the world.

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The Imaginary Master Mind

 

As the weeks continue to roll on, I know I have many things to improve in my life still, but am also learning and growing each day. I urge any reading this to ask, “Am I learning and growing each day, or am I staying the same? Am I focusing on the negative aspects of life, or looking towards things which are of benefit?”

 

I discovered a very cool thing from the book, “Think and Grow Rich” by Napoleon Hill last week. This is in relation to the ‘Master Mind’ principal. The summary of this is that having a group of experts in various fields of life to work with, dramatically increases the chances for success in anything one seeks to accomplish. For me, having experts in marketing, psychology, accounting, health, and any other area I discover are crucial.

 

Napoleon Hill formed a group called his “Invisible Counselor’s”. This was a group made up of some of the most influential people in the world, both past and present, and included Henry Ford and Abraham Lincoln. The concept of a Master Mind which consists of people who are dead or are unaware of one’s presence on the earth may seem a bit absurd. But I’ve nearly finished reading “Think and Grow Rich” now and it sounds like something I am going to try.

 

So some of you may be thinking I’m crazy and should check myself in a mental hospital. I agree that the idea of invisible counselor’s seems a little absurd. But then again, I have to ask myself, if I do what everyone else is doing, what is the chance of my success? And what a way to get a list of top individuals to draw from! Besides, this sounds like a fun thing to try.

 

My List

 

Without further adieu, here is the list of people, most unaware of my existence (save Lisa Irby, who knows me from a brief chat about my drjerm.com website), that I shall begin having meetings with:

 

• Anthony Robbins (Self help guru, takes a more practical approach)
• Wayne Dyer (Self help guru, takes a more spiritual approach)
• Lisa Irby (Internet marketing genius, probably the least well known of all my counselors, but no less valuable)
• Dwayne Johnson “The Rock” (Charismatic, successful actor)
• Larry Bird (Basketball Legend)
• Oprah Winfrey (One of the most recognizable women in the world, has her own TV show)
• Dr. Phil (Successful mental and health expert, has his own TV show)
• J.K. Rowling (Author of Harry Potter – extremely accomplished author)
• Stephanie Meyer (Author of Twilight – another accomplished author)

 

What a list eh? I sit and just think of how cool it would be to have all of these people in a room to talk to at will. And if you don’t know who any of them are, just go to a search engine and type their name in.

 

Guess what? I have this feeling inside of me that the meetings I have in my head with these people are not going to be much different than if I actually had them physically in a room to talk to. And I will likely add to this list as I discover those who are of note. And some of you might say, “You need to get their permission.” No I don’t, my mind is my own, and I can do with it as I see fit.

 

As an experiment, I am going to keep logs of the meetings I have with these people. I have to admit, I don’t know what to expect. But I do expect that by being proactive and seeking out the best from those who have achieved so much in the world, I will gain many wonderful insights. The notes on these meetings will be forthcoming!

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Leap Frogging From Ordinary To Extraordinary

I am going to share my thoughts about what separates the extraordinary from the ordinary. First off, there has been plenty said about what stops people from being extraordinary. Some of these are fear of failure, fear of criticizm, and fear of the unknown. But I do not wish to dwell on the negative aspects. I wish to share what I’ve seen in extraordinary people that sets them apart from others. And perhaps you will find the courage to be extraordinary.

 

The questions you may ask are why should I listen to you and why should I care? Those are two very excellent questions. The answer to the first is simply read and listen to what I have to say. If you don’t find any use for it, I wish you the best. The answer to the second one is a hidden life of great reward and fulfillment.

I believe that a special animal is needed to really illustrate this article - and that animal is the loveable frog! One of the coolest features of a frog is its ability to leap. And my how they leap – some frogs can leap over 50 times their body length, while the ‘average’ frog only leaps about 20 times its body length. If you were to take a six foot tall human, that’s 300 feet at a peak jump! Now that is the equivalent of one of us homosapiens nearly hurdling over the Statue of Liberty!

 

I really hope these links last a long time, but they are my reference for my information about frogs:
http://animals.howstuffworks.com/amphibians/frog-info.htm
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Statue_of_Liberty

 

Think of success, in this case, as the level to which one completes the ideas in his/her mind. Each level requires more and more of a jump to get to. To illustrate, let’s start first with the level of success in where you exist on this earth. I think everyone alive has achieved this level of success, and so we will create the first circle. And look at that, it’s one big party in there and everyone is invited. Congratulations, you have achieved the first level of success. And that is to exist here on this earth. No small feat by any means, this life is meant to challenge us, and just the fact you are here is impressive. But still, everyone else has done it as well.

 

 

Often times people talk about ideas for stuff they would like to do. Whether it’s starting a business, going on a trip, or changing a bad habit, most people have done this. But not everyone. It is a requirement to be able to communicate with others in order to do this. Still, this next circle is full of people, albeit somewhat less than the first. These are people who have simply spoken about something they would like to do and nothing more.

 

 

The next circle consists of those who go a leap further than simply talking about what they would like to do. Perhaps they write down some of what they would like to do, and begin to create a plan for putting it into motion. The beginning of creating the idea is the group of people in this circle and there is a smaller amount of people here than the previous one. These people have actually started to put their ideas into motion for a short time.

 

 

Further still is the next circle and even smaller is the amount of people in it. The next group of people have spent some time trying to put their ideas into motion. But obstacles, challenges, burn out, or other problems have discouraged them from continuing. After a few months, they have given up, but gave a good short burst to try their idea. These are the people who tried for a little while but just didn’t have it in them to keep going.

 

 

The disparity between this circle and the others before it is frightening. The leap to this circle is made by a small amount of people in the world. These are the people who get past the challenges and obstacles in their way to keep fighting to make their ideas a reality. This group of people are creating their ideas no matter what. The amount of people aware of their ideas may be relatively small however, but still, these people see their ideas through to completion.

 

 

The last circle here has a microscopic amount of people compared to the very first. In it are people who have ideas and see them to fruition. Not only that, they are able to get people around the world to be aware that their ideas exist. They capitalize by having their ideas purchased or adopted and make up some of the wealthiest and/or enriched people in the world today. These are the people whose burning desire, planning, and persistence far exceed the averge person. These are the leaders of the world today.

 

 

Do you have what it takes to make the leap to the final circle? It is a journey not many have completed. Most stop well before getting there. But if you have the courage, persistence, dedication, and intelligence to do it, the reward is well worth it. I am taking the leap to this final circle. I am far from getting there, but I am continuing my efforts each day.

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Sun. 8/17/2009 (8:59 PM MST) 

 

I am ecstatic. My wife and daughter Ellie are back from a trip along the Oregon coast with extended family. It is sure great to have them back. I feel an extra burst of energy and desire to accomplish when my wife is around. It makes me think of what Napoleon Hill talks about in “Think and Grow Rich” where many of the successful men in the world throughout history have had a wonderful woman behind them when they were succeeding.

 

I watched one of my favorite movies two days ago, “The Shawshank Redemption”.  If you have not seen the movie before, I recommend it highly – there are a few vulgar parts in it, so pick up an edited version if you are offended by such things. Also, skip the next two paragraphs if you do not wish to be spoiled by the movie’s plot.

 

*** Begin Spoiler ***

 

In short, in 1947, Andy Dufresne, an honest hard working banker, is charged with the murder of his wife and her secret golf pro lover. Sentenced to a life sentence, he is taken to Shawshank, a fictional prison in Maine. There he faces countless hardship, including being beaten, raped, and solitarily confined for months at a time. Through it all, he finds friends, hope, and an amazing persistence which allows him to tunnel, with a small rock hammer, out of the prison and escape just shy of being there 20 years. He makes off with $360,000 of the warden’s money and exposes Shawshank for murder and corruption and ends up meeting ‘Red’, his best friend from prison down in Mexico.

 

This movie illustrates two very powerful things – persistence and vision. The persistence of a man to keep focusing on his goal for nearly 20 years, regardless of the trials and hardships happening. The vision he created of escaping prison with just a simple rock hammer. He created this vision while carving his name in the wall and seeing some of the rock fall off the wall.  Simple point for anyone reading – persistence and vision are two powerful things.

 

*** End Spoiler ***

 

Some of you reading may think, “Oh that’s nice” and be on your merry way without a second thought. But maybe there are a few who will read and have the spark to keep the dream alive with persistence and vision. Do not give up, no matter your circumstance. You can do it!

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Sun. 8/6/2009 (11:12 AM MST)

 

Writing a novel continues to be a fun and fulfilling experience. There’s much I’ve learned and still have to learn about writing and making sure everything falls into place correctly. To get all this right is a time consuming process. But it is definitely worth it! I will only accept a polished and stellar novel before I get it published and printed, and not anytime sooner will this happen. Anyways, my wife Heidi has been helping edit my first draft and it is good to see there is much I need to improve. Getting into the habit of writing and working on this book did not happen over-night. I actually had the idea for writing a book about 9 years ago.

 

At that time, I wrote a few pages – pretty elementary stuff and very raw. Guess what happened after that? Nothing. The idea of writing a book simply gathered dust for the next 7 years. While this is unfortunate, I now know the reason for this, and it was simply my habits and expectations of myself and the life I was living. Writing a book and having it be known the world over simply did not enter my mind. Let me share with you my mindset for the first 7 or so years of my marriage (about Dec. 2000 – Feb. 2008).

 

I gave no thought to my career except I knew I could do something related to computers. The bar was set at simply getting a job doing computer stuff somehow. But let me backtrack even further. After graduating high school in June 1996, I moved to Utah with my brother Paul. I was content to work doing data entry at $7.50 an hour – and I thought this was great! Now there’s nothing wrong with a healthy attitude, but my state of mind was seriously flawed for a long time. And by that I mean that I had very low expectations for myself.

 

Now fast forward to February 2008. At this time, I was working with Media Learner, a company I helped start, which grew from theShipper.com, a website I helped start with another guy. I also played the online game ‘World of Warcraft’ at this time. I met many people online playing WoW (World of Warcraft), and saw that most of them had low expectations for themselves and generally struggled in many different areas of life. Mind you, these were for the most part, good, honest people, but I saw something common in most of them, as well as people I interacted with at work. I was beginning to notice more about people than I ever had before in my life. A stirring in me began and it started to pull me in a different direction, similar to a water skier on a boat that changes direction.

 

I created www.drjerm.com – basically a mind dump of the information I had collected to that point about life and what might help one find fulfillment and meaning. This took a few hundred hours, but the site is now there for anyone to read. And it all started with a thought! A thought to create something that would benefit others. A few months later, I began to slowly work on my book again and by the end of 2008, I was writing nearly regularly. Now I am at the point the first edited draft is complete and I am now working on it with my wife editing it and will soon have another solid editor helping me (thanks Wendy!)

 

What changed? Well, I’ve given up WoW for good, that was one thing. I left Media Learner and the chaos there. I seek to surround myself with people who seek to make a difference in life. I treat my time as something very precious – even mowing the lawn for a half hour wrenches me because I know there is something more I could be doing with my talents (not that lawn mowing is bad). I experienced the start of s shift that is changing the way I view myself, my time, and my life. This does not mean I have achieved perfection or complete fulfillment. And it does not mean I don’t make mistakes – I make plenty. It just means I have found a better path to take towards achieving what I want in life.

 

So how do I achieve all of this? Simple, form the moment I wake up to the moment I retire, I reiterate my focus and goals. I recite to myself the important things throughout the day. I pay careful attention to my state of mind and physical posture. If I feel my posture slouching and my thoughts drifting negatively, I correct it immediately. And beyond that, I proactively keep myself in an uplifted and confident state. This takes practice, but over time it will become a habit. It is amazing the change that happens in life just by focusing on your state.

 

This does not mean by doing this you’ll become a multi-millionaire celebrity. It does mean that you will have control over your life and the direction it goes, and your happiness and fulfillment will be dictated not by your environment, but by your state of mind.

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Sun. 7/26/2009 (11:00 PM MST)

 

I am amazed at how quickly time flies. I am making progress each day which I am excited about. I am reading the book, “Think and Grow Rich” by Napolean Hill. This is a very insightful book. It was written by Napolean Hill, an understudy to Andrew Carnegie, the steel billionaire in the early 1900s. He organized his findings by speaking with some of the most successful men of that time over the course of about 20 years!

 

This book is giving me great tools to use as I seek to break the barrier that stops so many of us from becoming more than just regular folks at regular jobs. The more I seek to do, the more work I realize I have to do, but I look forward to the continuing challenge.

 

When I was young as in when I was in high school and before, I still gave no thought towards what I would do with my life. As I look back, the first 29 years of my life were spent not giving a great deal of thought to what I was doing with my life. Sure I majored in Information Technology and got a great job and I am a whiz at working with websites. But now I feel that this is such a poor use of my time. I affect such a small percentage of people in the world by doing it. And so I am on a quest to find the fulfillment that comes with doing what I know I should do – and that is to reach out to as many people as I can through my books, online writing, speaking arrangements, and whatever else I can find to do.

 

But I digress, what I really want to talk about is the struggles I know many of you reading face to finding happiness and fulfillment. I do not want to go into the specifics, but I know your struggles involve the following:

 

Your kids

Your marriage/relationship

Your eating habits

Your depression

Your frustration with your job

Your financial struggles

Your jealousy of others

Your fatigue

Your anger towards another person

 

So take a moment and think about what you are focusing and thinking about each day. Is it how frustrated you are with your life? It is amazing that the reality for each of us generally becomes what our thoughts are most focused on. The great truth I have learned is that a shift in your physical stature and focus is enough to steer your reality ship in a different direction.

 

Instead of focusing on what is wrong, focus on what is right. As a child, we talked about our dreams and what we wanted to be when we grew up. As adults, we have generally spent a life of being told to be quiet and follow directions. This is unfortunate. From the time we are children, we are told to sit down and be quiet. This curtails our creativity.

 

Take hold of your thoughts. See the talents you have and what the wonderful things in your life are. Let your focus continually be on these things. When something goes wrong, deflect the natural negativity that tries to enter into your mind. Keep your focus on the good things of life. You will gain a mental strength over time as you do this and find life changing for the better. There will always be challenges, but your strengthened resolve will be able to handle it.

 

I have an edited draft of my first fantasy book ready now. I printed it out today. It is amazing how much paper it took up! And all of this started with an idea in my head – “I want to write a book.” And that thought is transforming into an amazing reality. Now my idea is this: “I will write a fantasy SERIES. And it will be known all over the world. And this is just the beginning to the books I will write.”

 

When you think about this, if you have not trained your mind, it is a little absurd. Write a fantasy book series that is well known all over the world? That is outrageous! I say to that NO WAY! If I can imagine it in my mind, I can create it. And I am doing it even now! There is nothing that you cannot accomplish if you have a burning desire. But that is not enough. You must have the tools to strengthen your mental state of being as well as make smart decisions. And even that is enough. Persistence and a continuous dedication are required.

 

I know you can do whatever you put your mind to. There is nothing quite as great as the human spirit!

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