Chapter 1: The Concept of Joy and Growth

"Do not be afraid that joy will make the pain worse; it is needed like the air we breathe."

— Goran Persson

During your FIVE MINUTE MIRACLE breathing session, reflect on the significance of heartfelt quotes. How much new JOY would you need to invite into your life to achieve a 1% improvement each week? Engaging both body and mind while in motion is the pathway to Mastery. Recently, Jason embarked on his very first micro Morning Ritual! We convened as usual at 3:30 PM (he can only postpone from 2 PM if he informs me beforehand). During our meeting, he shared insights from his Pomodoro sessions (25 minutes of focused work) where he studied success principles from Brendon Burchard, Tony Robbins, and his beloved anime!

He articulated his plans to apply these principles in real life, and his reasoning was impressive. HE IS LEARNING. More on that later. The key aspect here is that at the conclusion of his session, I had him practice three NLP "Swish" patterns, which we refer to as "changes." He needed to transform his state from negative to positive three times, raising his arms and affirming, "All the X I need is within me now! All the Y I need is within me now! All the Z I need is within me now!" X, Y, and Z represent elements of "High Performance Habits," a shared language among my family and business partners—principles like Clarity, Energy, Urgency, Productivity, Influence, and Courage. The way I view it, the MAGIC formula is what gets you started. The HP6 principles guide you to excel once you're in the game.

The Morning Ritual, which aligns body, emotions, and mind, is truly exceptional. I had been encouraging him to establish a complete ritual daily, considering it the last crucial element—once integrated, you weave three strong fibers into an unbreakable rope. This practice is an art of "Incantation": affirmations performed in motion.

He was preparing to do his "Changes" (which he claimed "does nothing," though his Mom and I have meticulously monitored his emotional control, which has skyrocketed, by the way) when inspiration struck me: "Why not perform your changes while doing chin-ups?"

He embraced the challenge. "All the CLARITY I need is within me now!" he declared, completing a chin-up. "All the INFLUENCE I need is within me now!" he exclaimed, and up he went again. "All the COURAGE I need is within me now!" he finished with the last chin-up.

Incredible. Clarity means recognizing his emotions and the path to mastery clearly. Influence involves controlling himself, communicating effectively, and persuading others. Courage empowers him to disregard the inner critic after failing his first written DMV learner's permit test, instead telling himself, "This means I need to study more. I can do this. I just can't do it TODAY."

HE HAS EMBEDDED THIS IN HIS BODY. Do you grasp the significance of that? Apply Clarity, Influence, and Courage to performing chin-ups.

Do you have CLARITY on how to execute a chin-up? Are you aware that most "strength" comes from recruiting existing muscle fibers? Mental focus?

Can you INFLUENCE yourself to complete the movement?

Do you possess the COURAGE to confront your weaknesses? If you once managed 20 chin-ups but can currently do only three, can you challenge that inner voice saying, "You're getting weaker; you're too old/out of shape and will never regain it," and instead, commit to doing your best and feeling proud of it? It requires COURAGE to face your limitations and push back against them until your last day.

The key takeaway here is that when you assert, "all the Clarity I need is within me now," a skeptical voice may whisper "bullshit." Yet, if you demonstrate clarity in that moment, and strive for just a 1% increase each week, you can laugh at that voice.

When you say, "all the Influence I need is within me now," and you manage to perform that chin-up despite the doubt, you can chuckle at that voice, too.

And when you declare, "all the Courage I need is within me now" while focusing on a challenging movement, you can laugh at that! You can FEEL your strength, that primal drive to hoist yourself up, connecting with the essence of SURVIVAL, which overcomes fear and transforms it into power.

For the first time, he experienced the profound integration of body, heart, and mind—this is the pinnacle of achievement. It represents the gateway to mastery, the gold standard.

And yes, you can achieve this in sixty seconds or less. Eventually, as you integrate this practice into your life, you can extend these sessions to a full 10–20 minutes of FIREDANCE. If that initial five minutes can yield a 1% change weekly, then 20 minutes a day could potentially elevate that to a 1% change DAILY. While I can't scientifically prove this and recognize the subjective nature of such claims, they are defensible and clear. The child within you can grasp this. You can clarify your MAP and consider MODELS. You can vividly visualize the ACTION you are taking today, fill yourself with GRATITUDE and positive emotions, and envision your goals and INTENTIONS. You can adjust your posture, voice, facial expression, and movements to exude CONFIDENCE that you CAN and SHOULD take these actions and succeed. Why? To escape pain, embrace JOY, and serve your community.

If this isn't enough motivation for a mere five minutes a day, then this may not be for you. However, if it resonates, I invite you to join the FIREDANCE: THE NEXT LEVEL meeting this Saturday at noon Pacific:

Steven Barnes is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.

Topic: Firedance…The Next Level

Time: May 27, 2023 12:00 PM Pacific Time (US and Canada)

Join Zoom Meeting

Meeting ID: 848 3949 0050

Passcode: 951502

Chapter 2: Practical Application of Morning Rituals

Exploring Jason's Fun Morning Routine gives insights into how engaging with joy sets a positive tone for the day.

The Kids School Morning Routine of Jason highlights the importance of structure and joy in achieving a productive day.