What is success?
I asked myself on my last birthday October 2nd when an old friend of mine said to me: "I wish you much success because I think that’s what you wish the most now…" And I knew she meant it in a bittersweet way because I just didn't have enough time for her.
Therefore I answered her: "Basically I only want to help as many people as possible to bring them facilitation, contentment, and fulfillment in their daily lives like I sense and live for over 10 years."
Waking up and knowing that I can do what I love to do again, get paid for exactly that, and what I have always loved doing: To help people around me, get them insights and deeper meaning. And now, I have over 30.000 hours and counting, of turning crisis into success stories by enabling breakthroughs.
I am currently in the middle of the EPM, and the timer in the membership site says 2 Days 12 Hours 24 Mins and 19 Secs while I’m writing this. I feel no pressure, except the one that I could make myself to push me to the class’s official Mission Accomplished upcoming Monday, and hit the 2.000 mark.
Today is Saturday. I know I can do it. But it wasn’t always like that. Shortly after my friend wished me success for my birthday, I was able to write this open letter to Sir Ken Robinson. And thanks to the EPM I finally could say publicly what I was hoping to say some day.
Here it is:
In one point you were wrong, Sir Ken Robinson! You didn’t convince me that there is not more to the concept of "Finding Your Element". And I can prove it. Let me quickly tell you a story about a boy, who was sexually abused at the age of 10. He didn’t tell his parents and it took him 20 years to find out what went wrong with him. He was convinced that he cannot feel anything. He drank, used drugs, to fill that whole inside of him, but he lost everything.
He didn’t give up because his deepest wish was to feel and experience the world like it is without dependent making substances. In his family, there was the saying that someone is in his element and others aren’t. But he never experienced his very own element.
Therefore he lived his everyday life and work, and hoped that one day, somehow it would be possible to find his element to have the meaning he craved so long for.
10 years later he discovered your book after he watched your 2006 TED Talk "Do Schools Kill Creativity?". He was in his 40-ies and eagerly read every line twice as soon as he was holding it in his hands to find out how he can find his own element.
He was thankful because finally someone was writing and talking about this concept of finding your element. So many beautiful and heartwarming stories about people who are living in their element inspired him deeply. But there was still no specific answer for him how to find his element.
He loves this book until today. The boy was me. I’m 52 years old and I have a professional coaching business offering breakthrough experiences since 8 years because I went on my journey to find out my very own element, and luckily I found mine finally.
Since then and 30.000 coaching hours later I am helping people finding their meaning in their lives with my own coaching programs.
I congratulate you from the bottom of my heart to your 10 year anniversary. This anniversary will always remind me how thankful I am having read your book, so I can live in my element helping others on the way to their brilliance. Thank you very much, Sir Ken Robinson, for being wrong in this one point not being able to convince me. "Mission Accomplished!" you could say.
But challenging tech issues arose. I had to bring my whole online presence to another server. Then there are Murray’s words in my ears to write better copy. You know like a 12-year-old from 5th grade in English… Well, I’m German.
While juggling my writing skills my mother had to be brought into the hospital again. The 5th time this year. I help her daily. I even moved into her house because she started to get dizzy and falling on her 75-year-old knees 3 years ago.
Friday, one week ago, another old friend of mine phoned me. She was in tears after 16 years in her relationship and at the end of it. A bumpy one with drug abuse and physical abuse, too, and 2 almost adult kids.
I decided to drive the 2 hours to pick her up and give her the space to get out of her situation and help her finding to herself again. In only 3 days I used my coaching skills to bring her back on track so that she is currently planning a fresh restart.
My now co-coach and former client Stefan has had another breakthrough. He sends me this message:
"…I finally went to the Toastmaster Club, and although I was there for the first time, I won the prize for being the best. I was absolutely in my element. I had a headache during the whole day and became a little grumpy. But somehow today was the day I had to go to the Toastmaster Club, and all lead to that…. My way will and must lead to being a speaker. That’s what I checked today! You had such a big part in that. And I want to thank you again most dearly. I hope you will accompany me for a very long time!“
I cried. One of my current clients is having a crisis and I brought her back on track, too. All that was happening in the last 7 days. Mission Accomplished!“ you could say… again. Or simply the life I chose 10 years ago is happening.
And I love it because I live my true purpose. It’s not juggling life. It is deciding where and when I can use my coaching skills for the better. In the last week, it was my old friend who needed a breakthrough. And of course I could have charged her, but I am in a financial position where I can decide to help her for free. And for me, success is just that. To be able to decide when and where I can help. Mission Accomplished!“ you could say again …
… But there are still the $2.000 to hit the goal of the EPM!? It’s Saturday and the timer says 2 Days 11 Hours 27 Mins 5 Secs… We’ll see… Then when“ is coming when it’s mature because I learned a long time ago that time is relative.
I am so thankful to Marisa and her awesome team, my coach Matthew, and proud to be among all you wonderful peer experiencifiers who gave me feedback, shared your heart with me, when I finally closed another important cycle in my life and business by sharing my open letter to SKR.
I am content and satisfied that I did my assignments and currently tweaking them to awesome. I listened to Marisa’s final words in the last training, and both of my two hearts are still jumping. One I will give my future clients and coachees this new kind of experience. And two I got this even when I don’t hit the $2.000 mark within the next 2 days.
I made so much progress and I can help so many people more than before the EPM. I will make definitely more than $2.000 and I will be able to help more than 2.000 people in the future because I learned so much in this program.
Thank you again, Marisa! Mission Accomplished!“ you could say, again.
Or ongoing… You decide.
Now, back to iterate to awesome, live my true purpose, and get paid for exactly that. Update: It’s Saturday and the timer says 2 Days 5 Hours 51 Mins 25 Secs…
I just had a follow-up call with a lead about my personal 1:1 coaching program called Live Your True Purpose™, and I showed her the new, but still unpublished version of my Call Me site according to the EPM. And she says that she wants to become my client to experience the 2nd most important day in her life.
Ka-Ching € 4.997. Starting January 2017. And after I showed her my current version of the sales page of The 8-Week Burnout Cure™, she wants me on board for her new start-up to be part of the board as a strategic advisor.
Ka-Ching Shares in another start-up, starting December 15th, 2016. Only by showing what I had learned in the EPM, I earned. And I didn't even open the cart for the Experience Product I'm still working on.
Well, “Mission Accomplished!“ you could say.
You decide.