Art credit: Daren Higham

They’re happening too often to call them all coincidence. In the summer I shared the miraculous cat tree story where out of nowhere I manifested a cat tree for my little critters. Since then, similar supporting events have been happening regularly enough that I’m beginning to trust that my intention and interpretation actually does shape reality. I haven’t taken time to write about all of them as they’ve occurred (sorry); I just don’t think about doing so often enough. But this one happened with such amazement, that I just had to record it. Here’s the story:

I’m laying in bed writing this on my new MacBook Pro. If you follow me on Twitter or Facebook, you know I’m in love with this computer and the brand. But that’s another story. What’s amazing is how the universe worked to fund the purchase. Check this out.

It started way back in 2000. That’s when I bought my dream car. I loved it then and I still do. But in 2006, a serious manufacturing flaw showed up: the rear drive assembly – the transmission, axle and suspension system – had somehow broken free of its welds. I didn’t realize this until well after the assembly had punched holes in the bed of my trunk! Repair cost: $2500.

You can imagine how unhappy I was about the situation and the repair costs. My conscious awareness was in emergent stages at that time and I was furious about spending so much money on such a car only to have something like this show up! The dealer was kind enough to pay for half the damage, even though it was out of warranty. They expressed reluctance at first, but realized the better part of valor. I thought they should have paid for it all, but I decided to take what I could get.

My mechanic said this was a common occurrence on these cars and at the time I contemplated filing a lawsuit to get the money from the manufacturer. But decided instead to pay for the repair and move on.

Fast forward: summer 2009. I get a letter from a law firm I hadn’t heard of. Some guy in California filed a class action suit against the manufacturer. Turns out there were thousands of people in the US having identical problems with their cars, enough to make it worth bringing it to the manufacturer’s attention via U.S. Justice. The letter was inviting me to be part of the class action. Of course, I applied. Not knowing how things might shake out.

In September, my PC began having all kinds of Windows related problems.  I also was tired of having to update all kinds of software, defragmenting drives, running disk cleanups, inoculating against viruses etc. Then, in October, the thing started overheating. My room mate, an expert on all things Mac, had been encouraging me to dump the PC. It was time. But I still didn’t want to do it because of the cost and the fact that I was using all my cash to fund my companies. I decided I’d go ahead and buy the Mac, understanding that everything happens for a reason and the money situation would work itself out.

At this time I was out of the country on vacation. When I returned home I checked my mail. There were two letters from the law firm managing the class action. The first one told me my eligibility was rejected because I hadn’t filed the needed information (I had though). The second one contained a check for $1100.00. Turns out the car manufacturer settled the class action. How much did my Mac cost? $1100.

This series of events reminds me of a often-told parable of a farmer, his son and a bunch of wild horses. I’m sure you’ve heard it too. But here’s the point: As I said at the start, these things are happening all the time. NedWater also is benefiting tremendously by the seemingly miraculous timing of fortunate events that are happening with a regularity too consistent to be called coincidence. Today is a perfect example. I was delivering water to existing customers today and realized I needed to follow-up with someone who mentioned wanting to be a customer. But my day was fully-scheduled; there was no time – at least I believed – to fit in contacting this person. I had plugged after setting up one customer with a resupply, I had about an hour to set up one more customer, then meet my business partner for lunch. I set up that customer, and had twenty more minutes before my lunch appointment. That’s when I realized I had forgotten to put a set of NedWater promotional materials on the dispenser I set up two customers ago. I drove back to that customer’s office and the parking slot I had vacated was still open….and I still had 15 minutes on the meter! I parked, went upstairs and set up the material and when I was walking out of the office, guess who I ran into? That’s right, the same guy I was thinking about who wanted to become a part of NedWater! We agreed that I’d set up his office service the next day.

There are a lot of key learnings I got from this experience. One, is that I am more powerful when I set an intention and let the universe figure out how to fulfill it. Two, I need to relax more and worry less about outcomes. The third is naturally occurring: I am learning to trust the mysteriousness serving my intention.

Is there a connection between what is happening as exemplified by these two examples, and the optimistic perspective I take on the nature of reality and our ability to shape it? I think you know my answer to this question. What’s yours?

Click to enlarge

If you are in the Metro Portland area on Nov. 12, you have an opportunity to hear me speak at no cost to you.  I’ll be at the WIRED Northwest Engineering Employment Symposium, keynoting from 9 a.m. – 10 a.m. at the Embassy Suites Washington Square, 9000 SW Washington Square Rd Tigard, OR 97223. The speech title is “A life Worth Living is a Life Put on the Line.” Here’s a content abstract:

Where did we learn that hard work, dedication, education and thrift lead to virtue, happiness and security? In this highly personal, intimate exploration, attendees will explore one of many uncontested life models we call “truth”, models which may keep us living mediocre lives. A life worth living emerges from models that inspire us to put our lives on the line. That sounds scary. The paradox is, when we do, we live our dreams. Through intimate, personal stories and encouraging, real-life models, this keynote inspires listeners to confront their fears now, and begin moving towards their goals.

Note that all my speeches presentations and events are created from scratch and as such are original and tailored specifically for each audience.  This event especially demands such an approach. “Cynicism will be high [among attendees],” Bent Dahl told me. “So you’ll have your work cut out for you.” Brent should know; he’s the event organizer. He’s also a professional speaker. So he knows that as the keynote speaker, I own setting the context, pace and mood for the event.Fortunately, cynicism is my speciality . I expect to earn my fee on this one.

To reach the audience, I’m going to do something I don’t often do in my keynotes: I’m going to share my personal experiences over the last 11 months, some of my own struggles, challenges and how I am using my conscious awareness to overcome them. So, more than ever before, this speech will be a personal look at how I am using what I talk about to create opportunity in the face of my own cynicism, fear and personal weaknesses. Yes, just like everyone else, I have these in my life.

Brent expects up to four hundred downsized or displaced engineers to attend the up to six hours of plenary sessions, breakouts and panel discussions plus tabletop exhibits and networking opportunities focused on Education & Training, Entrepreneurship, Job Search Skills.

So, if you’re in the Tigard/Beaverton area and are available, make a point of visiting. Registering is highly recommended (call SWWDC at (360) 567.1070 or email info@swwdc.org) And if you do, come up and say high afterwards.

A word about the sponsors: The event is made possible by a Workforce Innovation in Regional Economic Development (WIRED) grant from the U.S. Department of Labor. Regional partners include Worksystems Inc., Southwest Washington Workforce Development Council, Workforce Investment Council of Clackamas County, MTC Works, and Enterprise for Employment & Education. Brent’s company is Altitude Essentials. If you need an event planned, look him up!

“This day will unfold harmoniously. I’ll enjoy every moment, relishing in the surprises and the plans I’ve made as well as the times I spend with the people in my life. This day brings with it more joy, more fun, more things to appreciate, more adventure, more prosperity and more productivity as I get all I need to accomplished joyfully accomplished”

This is the intention with which I began the day today. And so far, things are unfolding exactly along these lines. More and more people are beginning to not only believe but to know that our lives and events in them are not coincidences. Here is what has happened in my life, just today, that confirms this for me.

After writing this intention above, I immediately began preparing to deliver my first NedWater customer their water service. And just as immediately, my experiences began to click in line with the intention. For example, on the way to the customer’s office, I was thinking about how I’m going to set up initial service with new customers. I used my personal 2-door coupe to set up service for this customer today, but my car is inadequate to continue setting up new service this way. My delivery partnerships with Dragonfly Chai and Organics to you, are in place, but they are for existing service and not practical for new service set up. What I need, I thought, is a truck. I also thought “Wouldn’t it also be great if I could get someone who could service these new customer set ups, or work on other part of the business while I’m setting up the service?” I thought about these and other details while driving to the customer’s office.

When the customer met me, she introduced me to her friend. We chit-chatted for a while and my customer mentioned that her friend was looking for a job, and, that she had a truck! We exchanged contact information, I completed the install and left with a deep appreciation for how this intention business and the feeling state behind intentions might be.

The Install took about 30 minutes. That left me 30 minutes to get from my customers offfice to the pet adoption agency where I got my cats. It opened at noon. I got there at noon, but the shop wasn’t open. That gave me time to start this blog. Meanwhile, a woman approached and showed me enormous appreciation by saying “my you sure are a handsome man!” Which felt really good.

After 10 minutes, the owner entered. I was there to get my rebate for having my cats neutered, but she forgot her checkbook at home.

“Let me see if I have enough cash here to give you your rebate.” Sure enough, she had enough. I was able to leave the shelter and arrive home at 12:59, just on time to meet a potential new room mate at 1 p.m.

So far, I’d say my day is shaping perfectly aligned with my intention. I’m eager to see how the rest of the day goes…..

Photo credit: Nicolas Rivet Creative Commons

Summer is traditionally time for people to relax, take vacation, spend time with family and enjoy the summer weather and holidays. Here at Perry Gruber Limited, summer has offered dramatic change and opportunity. And I’m jumping in with both feet.

It’s been amazing watching life unfold since leaving Intel more than eight months ago. Looking back, with 20/20 hindsight, I can see how circumstances aligned to make this all possible.  I’ll only talk about one such circumstance in this post, otherwise we could be here all day.

In early 2008 I delivered a keynote speech at Portland State University. I spoke about a new perspective on public private partnerships. After the speech, a number of people wanted to talk with me. This isn’t unusual as my speeches tend to provoke thought and people want to share their responses. At this speech though I met one person who has had an extraordinary impact on my life and career. Mark Grimes.

Mark is the founder of Ned.com, NedSpace and a co-founder of NedWater. Back in 2008, I didn’t know all this. He just seemed really cool and thought my speech was right on for the times we’re in. That meeting (some would call it chance, but I see it otherwise) turned into a deep friendship. Little did I know that my friendship with Mark would create opportunities I had been dreaming about, but didn’ t know how to create myself.

It seems to me that the more one puts out an intention of creating a certain something, the physical universe begins organizing around that intention so that it becomes one’s reality. So has been the case with Mark. You see, I put the intention of creating businesses that make the world a better place. I didn’t know how that was going to happen, but my first foray is Perry Gruber Limited. In the last six months Mark and I have collaborated on two ventures that are still nascent, but full of promise. One is Chomper.com, an entrepreneurial educational opportunity for young people, and the other is NedWater, which you can read more about at www.liquidchange.net.

The point is, I’ve learned from Mark that flexibility is the key in creating value, making the world a better place and being an entrepreneur. The first part of this year has been a post-graduate education in entrepreneurship, another thing I set the intention to learn more about so that I can start my own businesses. Summer has only just begun, and don’t get me wrong, I’m having my share of fun and relaxation. But it’s also turning out to be the setting for great change and opportunity. Stick around, something amazing is going to emerge.