Man On Wire

I just walked a tight rope. 

It was between two hundred story buildings. One slight mistake and I fall a thousand feet and die.

Actually I didn’t do it — I watched another guy. 

It was a video of something he did back in the eighty’s on Netflix. It’s called “Man On Wire”. It’s about a french tight rope artist named Philippe Petit. He spent a lifetime practicing for this moment.

Even though I was only watching a video I got scared. So scared my hands started to shake. I felt it in my body.

I was losing balance; all from watching a video from 30 years ago.

Fear- this uncomfortable feeling. This nervousness. This shake. What is it?

It always means the same thing. It means that I am focused on what I don’t want. And what focus on tends to be more likely to happen.

Don’t get me wrong; it’s not like suddenly I’m going to fall 100 stories after watching Netflix. But I do feel all of the sensations that would make me fall. I lose balance, concentration, and even control over my body when I’m afraid.

If I were on a real tightrope- I’d be dead.

I’m glad every day life is not so dangerous. We live on the ground.

But we face many other kinds of tightropes in life. We get scared about money. We get scared about health. We get afraid that something might happen to someone we love.

And every time we feel fear we feel terrible.

Want to know what makes you afraid?

Something Bigger is calling you. This Bigger thing might be God- I’m not sure. This bigger thing (I call it “Source”) is always calling to you. Wanting you to join IT.

This bigger thing is your hearts Desire.

I like using a capital “D” on the word “Desire”. Because maybe God and your hearts Desire are one in the same. I don’t know.

Fear (anxiety, anger, frustration, depression — call it what you like) all happens when you disagree with SOURCE. SOURCE is calling you toward your Desire — and on some level you believe something about your Desire that is untrue.

Source sees your health; but you are fearful of a diagnosis.

Source sees your wealth; but you are wondering how you are going to pay the bills.

Source sees love; but you are angry and blaming others.

Source already got where you wanted to go and is standing over there on the other side calling to you. Asking you to join It.

But you stubbornly refuse. 

Source pulls — you pull back- and the stress of this fight hurts! That’s why you feel awful during these fights. And that awful feeling is your indication that you are doing something wrong.

Try it for yourself. 

Pick a fight with Source right now — only for a moment.

Imagine yourself at the top of a 120 story building; standing on the edge — one foot stepping onto a tightrope. Imagine what it would look like, how it would feel. 

If you imagine vividly you will feel fear. That fear is showing your disagreement with Source.

You say: “No way — I’m going to die”!

Source is on the other side of the tightrope saying: “Come over here to this other building; you are safe, I’ve got you- and this walk is AWESOME!!”.

In every situation each time you feel ANY negative emotion or stress it’s because of this argument. Every negative emotion always means the same thing- you are literally picking a fight with God.

The more you fight the more exhausted you become. The less productive you are. The more mistakes you make.

The trick is to stop fighting. To do everything you can to go where Source is — and source is right there — waiving for you to come on over and be with It.

Become a master of asking and answering this simple question:

“What does Source think”?

The question is powerful. It leads directly to where Source is. It leads directly to what Source is doing.

When you think a thought that makes you happy, grateful, eager or loving; you are thinking just like Source. How good you feel shows you how well you are doing.

Think like Source long enough and you will see the evidence of what Source knows. Life begin to give you more and more joy- less stress, less fatigue and more good.

So your work is to appreciate, to love, to be grateful, to notice the things you enjoy. 

You constantly remind yourself of what you want and why you want it. You never ask how- because “how” isn’t your work — it’s Source’s job. “What” and “why” is your job — nothing else.

Here’s another way to pick a fight with Source; start asking “how”.

Do this now: Think of something big you really, really want to happen. Something major, something that would be a game changer.

Now think about “how” you will get it. Ask yourself “how” four or five times and really think about it. Try and come up with your own plan. Your own strategy.

Can’t you feel the stress? Can’t you feel the tension in the back of your neck around your eyebrows and face?

That stress is another sign that you’ve started a fight. You are arguing with Source over who’s job is who’s. When you try and steal someone else’s job it always causes stress. Especially if They are a lot bigger than you.

To master this work you must put your focus entirely on “what” you want and “why” you want it. Do not deviate from it. Put one foot in front of the other. 

“Easier said than done” you say.

It’s true; this is not easy. It’s a skill. 

This skill must be practiced. You’ve got to practice it thousands and thousands of times. Even when you master it you will lose balance sometimes.

But if you practice enough you will know it IS possible. 

You can get so good at this that even when you lose balance you will get it back. You will get back in balance so quickly you never completely fall. 

Stay on the rope long enough and you will cross.

“If one man can do it another can too”.

If one man can so refine and practice his thinking that he is able to walk a thin rope a thousand feet in the air- ANYTHING is possible.

The only difference between him and you…

 … is a lifetime of practice.