Nothing gives me the heebie-frikken-jeebies more than the thought of ‘just getting by’.

‘Just getting by’ – A numb way of life in which just enough is done to maintain a fragile reality of perceived limitation and ‘get by’, in which a person tells their dreams to stop dreaming and convinces themselves that they are fine with settling for boring mediocrity whilst secretly wishing that their life was more magic but too afraid to become a magician, accompanied by a belief that life is limited and that they cannot be rich or smart or free or happy or brilliant, and characterised by a greasy sheen of dullness in the eyes and a slight dragging of the feet.

It’s a way of life that many people …

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Of all the ways to describe reality and life, SillyPutty is my favourite. By far.

Now just in case that first sentence didn’t splat gooey memories across your face, and just in case you’re confused by the term “SillyPutty” and haven’t cheerfully ripped apart one of the 300 million small plastic eggs that have contained the mythical substance since its invention in the 1940s, I’m ‘a fly a quick whirl at describing what can only be respectfully described as putty that has gone thoroughly silly.

Putty is a soft dough-like squidgy smoosh that you can squeeze into different shapes and stretch and break apart into smaller bits. Think play-doh or Blu-Tack or bread dough.

That’s ordinary putty. But SillyPutty has ...

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Every year, in the middle of the African desert, just outside of Timbuktu, there’s a festival.

Thousands of people journey to experience a musical explosion of culture and magic.

I haven’t been to the festival. Not yet. But I did see one of the bands that had performed;

And something happened that completely changed the way that I relate to reality, success and life…

Tucked in a tiny hidden treehouse-ish building in downtown Cape Town, a room ignited to a heightened level of existence; sparked by five nomadic tribesmen wearing the most outrageously glorious and elaborate outfits alive, their faces lit with makeup and sweat, and excitement for what was about to happen.

Warm Undiluted Magic – the musky kind. ...

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In…. … …and… … out…

Yum. Another deliciously smooth sip of air.

Breathing – feels good duddn’t it?

‘specially now that you’re aware of it.

Maybe my imagination is a lil overactive, or maybe I just watch too many movies. Both methinks.

But you ever seen a movie scene with somebody passed out and then they get a vapour waved under their nose and boom – they’re instantly awake and alert.

…or ever laid down to rest before doing something, only to fade into dreamland and then snap yourself back awake?

Well that vapour is right under your nose – so to speak – all the time.

And the ability to snap yourself out of dreamland is there too.

But I’m not talking’ ‘bout ...

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It is a well known and observable fact that screaming and flailing your arms like an energetic savage banshee whilst running is not an effective way to run.

It wastes energy. It breaks momentum. And it makes you dizzy. Makes people around you dizzy too. And frightened.

Not that anybody runs for travel anymore – we’ve tamed big metallic beasts who drool fumes and howl through fanged radios for transportation – but it doesn’t take too much imagination to see how screaming and throwing your arms wildly isn’t going to make you win the 100 meter sprint final in the Olympics. Usain Bolt your windows, the banshee is warming up.

Swinging your arms frenetically and yodelling as though you are being ...

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They are.

…and they’re just feelings. That you create.

Most of the time not consciously, but you do create them.

Ever been feeling really down and yuck? Where all you can think of is a million reasons why you suck, and allovvasudden something happens like hearing that you made some money or getting a phonecall from an old friend or attractive creature of the opposite sex.

And boom. Like magic.

You’re glowing.

Walking on Sunshine.

So here are some quick tricks that you can use anytime to feel great instantly…

Clapping is loads of fun. Really.

So whatcha do is you get up and take a step back. You need a little space around you since the more exaggerated and ...

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Your life is soaked in the colours of your consciousness.

Every experience you’ve ever had – including the one you’re having right now – ricochets through the expanses of your perception where it is shaped and moulded to fit snugly into your personal version of reality.

We create our individualised experiences of the world.

The way you think, feel, live; moods, anxieties, limitations; presence, potential, freedom; immersion in life; EVERYTHING – every little quirk and quark that makes up the creature reading these words – it’s all dependent on the size and quality of your consciousness…

Uh. Huh?

Okay. Prolly lost you at the end of the first sentence. So let’s take a quick detour past the entirety of awareness: your consciousness.

Consciousness is one of ...

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Most people don’t live in reality.

They live in their own self-created version of reality. …an edited, diluted interpretation of real life that isn’t actually real.

It’s a really subtle thing.

They seem similar. But they’re completely different.

Problems. Thoughts. What ifs. Worries. Wants. Emotions. Feelings. Beliefs.

They come. And they go.

But they’re not real.

They’re just stories that we create about real life to make ourselves feel special and to make ourselves the star in our story. Not the hero, the star.

And just like commentary, they only exist about what has happened in the past.

Stories that dance in and out of awareness. Each thought another elaborate step that grabs our attention as we get caught in the hypnotic show ...

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I don’t want everybody to like me.

Huh?

I don’t …because there’s no way to be real and have everybody like you.

When you’re true to yourself and do what you want, some people are bound to get pissed off.

Comes down to the good ‘ol maxim, “if you try to please everybody, you please nobody”.

Why?

Sure, some people will get jealous and others will have their own latent issues – didn’t get enough hugs as a kid or whatever – but the real reason is more subtle.

Way more subtle.

And it’s not them. It’s you.

See, the issue isn’t the ‘please everybody’ part.

The real issue comes right before that. The ‘try’ part.

When you’re trying to please other people. When ...

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