4 Column Worksheet: Magic Magnifying Mind: Where am I and where am I going?

The Doctor in "Acceptance was the answer" page 407 talks of a 'Magic magnifying mind' on page 420, and says on page 419 that "If I focus on a problem, the problem increases: if I focus on the answer, the answer increases."
You can see a pdf of Acceptance was the answer here http://www.alcoholics-anonymous.org.uk/bigbook/pdf/theystoppedintime16.pdf

The picture above is a worksheet that I think addresses problem solving from this persecutive. It is based on something I was shown regarding Step 1, 2 and 3.
The reason I mention it, is because it is very useful long after step 1 2 and 3 is over. We all tend to dwell on the problem instead of trying to envisage the solution. For me, this is a useful way to get myself to focus on what I want instead of dwelling on the stuff that's not working. I find it very positive. Plus it forces me to think beyond what I think I can achieve right now, and if I keep thinking of the new picture or the new vision, my mind becomes adjusted to this new vision. Much nicer than thinking about how I get it wrong. :) It gives me hope, and gets me fired up and excited about how I could do it a better way. There is no pressure to get it right immediately because as you can see in the 4th column, I need only ask myself could a power make me into that kind of person. That's all.

Anyway, the picture is big enough to print out and be readable. This is not intended to be an overview of Step 1, 2 and three, instead I just wanted to share something which I found, and still find very useful.

Anyway I hope you are having a !!! lovely Friday :)

What do you WANT to happen? Well then, ..IMAGINE living !! that reality

The above video is Adventures in Success by Will Powers.
This ? Trick was called Metaphysics by ? booksellers. All the books i bought ages ago had the typed label 'Metaphysics' as a subject guide on the back. Perhaps they classify them as something else now. I dont know as I haven't looked at a new one for at least ? 10 years.
It is encapsulated (as are so man other realities) by one of my favorite ! slogans:

You MOVE TOWARDS, and BECOME LIKE, THAT WHICH YOU THINK ABOUT, whether it is good for you, or bad for you

Similar slogans are:
You'll see it when you believe it
"We are what we think. All that we are arises with our thought. With our thoughts, we make our world." ~The Buddha
What you 'see' is what you 'get'
Thoughts Become Things...choose the good ones!

Basically. Whatever you tend to dwell on shows up more and MORE.
So if you have a habitually complaining mind. Guess what shows up? Yep. More of the complain type stuff. Well that's what I find.
Like attracts like.
The same principle is explained in the film The Secret
Cosmic ordering works along the same principle. There are a ton of books on Metaphysics. Called Manifestation, cosmic ordering and gawd knows what else. TONS of books basically all saying just about the same thing.

The AA version goes like this:
"The more you think about the problem, the bigger the problem gets. The more you think about the solution, the bigger the solution gets."
or:
"When I focus on what's good today, I have a good day, and when I focus on what's bad, I have a bad day. If I focus on a problem the problem increases: if I focus on the answer, the answer increases."
(p451, AA Big Book) Third Edition. Personal stories: Doctor, Alcoholic Addict

ANYWAY.
The jist is.
You IMAGINE living the ? Thing you want. And well.. This is where it starts sounding a bit ! Odd. Well I find that it pretty much tends to come into being.
I'm a little lazy with this technique as I tend to wait untill my back is against the wall and I really need to GET (whatever it is) sorted in a very short while, and THEN I get round to doing this!
But yeah. Every time I do it, it seems to work.
SO while I am on a short study break I am going to do some of this stuff. Jobs id like to get down the line, etc etc. I feel no sense of urgency at the moment because I don't have any ? Immediate problems as such, but it will help me no end if I get a CRYSTAL CLEAR image in my mind of EXACTLY the reality I would like to see myself in.

Reminds me of that song Adventure in Success by Will powers.
But I much prefer the Stanton Warriors version which is not for sale on iTunes, which is a total drag.
Stanton Warriors - Adventures In Success by 679 Recordings If you REALLY want I can tell you where you can get an mp3 of the 679 vinyl track, but you'll have to email me!

So ! STOP!!!!!!! Dwelling on the PROBLEM
Think instead of " What would it look like WITHOUT !! the problem?"
Go on! Imagine it!!!!
Yes. It requires a bit of imagination and WORK. But yeah its worth it.
Sit down and paint the picture. Write it down. Like a list.
Then step into the shoes of the new imaginary You and see how it feels to be that person. To have that life. To feel inside the way you always wanted to feel inside. Imagine what it feels like to be 'there' NOW.
What's it like? Was it what you thought it would be ?
Interesting isn't it?
And just 'visit' this new you by stepping into the shoes for 5mins a day or so. A little trip to the new psyche you always wanted, and just 'be' in that new persona for 5 mins or so. Like breaking in a new pair of shoes. Till it starts feeling VERY normal. Usual. Same ol same ol.

Oh yeah. This ? type of 'exercise' is included in my Step 2 with Sponsees. They are required (as I was) to get to see their powerlessness AND unmanageablity in Step 1. A very specific, CRYSTAL CLEAR list of their failings. Their inabilty to control their drinking, etc.
In Step 2 I asked them on EACH failing. "What would it look like WITHOUT !! the problem?"
so htey had to go away and think.. "What would it look like WITHOUT !! the alcohol problem?" (ie the need or desire to drink) and they would imagine things like..
''I am having the MOST fun at this party and I am the only one not drinking! Heheee
"I feel fantastic! when I'm out and about, and the thought of a drink could not be further away from my list of things I want to do this evening!"
I LOVE! not drinking. Not drinking when i'm with people seems like the most natural thing in the world!"
"I LOVE dancing on the speakers/ tables sober! Falling off them is no longer a problem! Ha!"
etc etc. You get the picture.
WHY do they do this? Because ther is NO POINT in asking a higher power to 'restore you to sanity' if you have NO CLUE what 'sanity' looks like!!! The EASIER it is to 'see' what sanity IS, the more motivated you will be to get there!
I see no point in mouthing the ords of the steps if all they are is just a WORD. I want each sponsee to know EXACTLY what sanity would look like IN THIER LIFE.
After all the Big Book tells us we need to be SPECIFIC (p20, AA Big Book) (ie not vague) in the ay we do the steps. So a VAGUE understanding of what sanity IS, will NOT DO. Heheh.
Step 2 is like dangling a carrot in front of the sponsee.
Once they see what sanity looks like, they get excited about getting well. they start looking forward to step 9. thank GOD. Makes my job easier, and thats all that matters !!! Hhehee

Another cool trick is to imagine a person you admire. (Can be anyone)
Think of all the cool things you like about them. Why you appreciate them.
Imagine them standing in the room with you.
Stand up and walk over to where they 'are'. Stand inside their 'space'.
See the world through their eyes.
What does the world look like now?
How do you feel about the situations presenting themselves to you now?

Lyrics to Adventures in Success by Will Powers.
"You are an important person.
A rare individual.
A unique creature.
There has never been anyone just like you and never will be.
You have talents and abilities no one else has.
In some ways you're superior to any other living person.
The power to do ANYTHING you can imagine is within you when you discover your real self by practicing a few simple laws of success.

First law of success.
Take inventory of your assets.
Don't be modest or critical.
Be open and objective.
Get a pencil and paper.
Write down every good thins about yourself you can think of.

Second law of success.
Write a description of the person you'd like to be.
Describe your personal dress, your home, your automobile, your desired occupation and income.
Be HONEST.
Now, go even deeper
Describe the INNER person you'd like to be.
Let your mind run WILD.
Assume you can become ANYTHING that you desire.
The fact is, you WILL become the person you HONESTLY describe.
You CAN'T avoid it.

Third law of success.
Concentrate on a mental image of the person you'd like to be.
Paint a picture in your imagination of who you want to become.
Constantly hold this visual in your mind's eye.
See yourself performing and responding like a champion.
Feel the confidence and courage that RADIATE from this type of person.

These three laws are powerful and effective in changing lives.
They'll work for you without fail if you're persistent in applying them."

If you liked this track, other slightly corny but enjoyable ones are on Will Powers Dancing For Mental Health listed here with mp3 samples. But the Stanton warriors 679 Breakbeat version of Adventures in Success is my personal favorite.

Right. On that note! I'm off! Have a fabulous Tuesday!

How to get a LOVING concept of a Higher Power. If you do not already have one.

It HAS to be a LOVING concept of a HP. (see Trad 2.) If it is even a LITTLE bit judgmental, it’s no good. Generally, when talking to your higher power, ask for help with whatever ROADBLOCKS you are experiencing at present.
If the roadblock is that you have a PUNISHING or JUDGEMENTAL higher power, then this is not really in keeping with the 'instructions' in Tradition 2.
You can get very unstuck down the line, if you 'drift' into a punishing concept.
With AA It's ALL in the detail!! (Well that's what I think anyway.) I am AMAZED at how STUCK people can get at a later stage if they do not 'dot the I's and stroke the t's' if you know what I mean..

I ALWAYS say to new people..
Ask your higher power for the MOST loving concept of a POWER greater than you.
Ask your higher power for the MOST powerful concept of a POWER greater than you.
Self will isn't going to get you there! (See Big Book quote below) That's how I got my concept...

Why not try 'the power of AA as a whole' to begin with?
Or the power that makes the earth turn?

"If a mere code of morals or a better philosophy of life were sufficient to overcome alcoholism, many of us would have recovered LONG ago. But we found that such codes and philosophies did NOT save us, NO MATTER HOW MUCH WE TRIED.
We could wish to be moral, we could wish to be philosophically comforted, in fact, we could will these things with ALL our might, BUT THE NEEDED POWER WASN'T THERE.
Our human resources, as marshaled by the will, WERE NOT SUFFICIENT: they FAILED UTTERLY." p45

Have a nice Sunday! Weather is GLORIOUS here!

Answers to your Prayers

God has only three answers to your prayers:
Yes
Yes, but not now
No, because I have something better for you

(This is an old one, but I was just reminded of it today). I have found it to be true in my recovery anyway. I trust when things drift apart, that it's time for one chapter to end so that another one can begin. Basically I have faith in 'failure' as a necessary closing of one door, to make way for the new.
So often we cling to 'the old ideas'. Anything familiar basically. Whether its good for us or bad for us, because we think there will be nothing better. What a load of !!! Very limited thinking! Our higher power has MUCH better plans for us! (Well that's what it's been like for me anyhow)

P100
When we look back, we realize that the things which came to us when we put ourselves in God’s hands were better than ANYTHING we could have planned. Follow the dictates of a Higher Power and you WILL, (not might) presently live in a new and wonderful world, no matter what your present circumstances!
p63
Being all powerful, He provided what we needed, IF we kept close to Him and performed His work well.

By the way, when asking your higher power for help with ANYTHING, always finish it it off with 'IF it's your will', JUST IN CASE you ask for something that you can't handle!!!. Like they say... 'If you pray for an elephant, make sure you've got a big back garden!'

Step 2 Cheers you up. It's message is HOPE

Step Two. - the Minimum Requirement

We needed to ask ourselves but ONE short question.
"Do I now believe,
or am I even willing to believe,
that there is a Power greater than myself?"

Chapter 1. BILL'S STORY page 12
Nothing more was required of me to make my beginning.

Tradition 2. It HAS to be a LOVING Power. Not JUGMENTAL or PUNISHING.
A Constructive not a Destructive force.

Look up the word POWER in the dictionary.
The word is POWER not God. Don't get them confused.
Mull over the word 'Power' and see what images come to mind..
Personally I like the visualization of 'Power' in the cinema. Like in the X men, star wars or star trek type things. They often try to dramatize 'Power' at some point in the storyline. This is a useful tool to help us meditate on what the word 'Power' means to us.

As soon as a man can say
that he does believe,
or is willing to believe,
we emphatically assure him that he is on his way.

It has been repeatedly proven among us
that upon this simple cornerstone
a wonderfully effective spiritual structure can be built.

Chapter 4. WE AGNOSTICS page 47
At the start, this was all we needed to commence spiritual growth,
to effect our first conscious relation
with God as we understood Him.

Chapter 4. WE AGNOSTICS
page 55
the consciousness of your belief is sure to come to you.

Here are some ideas for a concept of a Power Greater than Yourself

The Power of AA as a whole
The collective power of the group.
The Power that makes the Earth turn
Good Orderly Direction
Group Of Drunks
The sense of magnitude you get when you look at the stars at night.
The Universe..
Gravity

The more you think about it, the more you realize that everybody has a concept of a power greater than themselves.
Think what life would be like if the world was full of people that thought they were the most powerful entity in the universe. (!) weird huh?