United we fall.... Or stand....
This is a true story, about my observations and experience, in trying to understand the power of participating in the collective consciousness.
It can be a powerful force, to unite with others in thoughts and intentions for a good cause, but it can be very limiting, to unite with others in a collective illusion, and to subconsciously fall into collectively held limiting ideas.
You can take this concept of collectively held limiting ideas, from the 'belief' in recession, and unemployment.... All the way to deeper levels, like the collectively held beliefs in the aging of the body, instead of merely stages of change and transformation..... To the collectively held beliefs in sickness and in death.... and the validity of their reality....
But I will not get into these depths here.
I will give a simpler, less controversial and easier to contemplate earthly example about selling a house.
Years ago, right after our marriage, my husband Jules and I, decided to sell our previous homes and to buy a house together.
We decided that we wanted our new space, to be clear of our past divorces, the argument the walls of our houses have heard.... And to build a new nest together.
We wanted a spacious house in a quiet and beautiful neighborhood and to honor the fact that I am a busy artist, and needed a light filled separate studio space.
We narrowed our search to two neighborhoods in Miami.
Coconut Grove and Coral Gables.
In Coral Gables, which is a lovely neighborhood with tree lined streets and spanish architecture, we found a beautiful home that fitted us to perfection.
We bought it on a large mortgage for $500,000
Being an artist, I put much creativity into the house.
We redesigned the house and accentuated its beauty,..... resurfaced the swimming pool, added dragon sculptures, spitting water into the pool, large urns filled with flowers... We planted a meditation garden and upgraded some elements of the interior..... Including some unique paint washes I did on the walls.
Our investment was mostly in creative thinking, not much in terms of out of pocket cash cost.
After three years, we decided to sell the house.
We wanted to move out of the city and to live in a rural place.... To be surrounded with natural beauty and birds.
We talked about how to handle selling the house.
The inevitable question came up, of how much to ask for the house....
Jules said that the real estate market had increased, but we only owned the house for three years..... Yes, we made improvements,...... but still....how much can you add for that?
Jules said that he would be happy with asking $750,000 for the house.
I felt dispirited.
I was buying the local newspaper, and seeing houses down our street and close by, with much higher asking prices, and I knew that none of them were as lovely as ours....
But without Jules being on board with me.... I knew that I will not be able to make it happen....
Jules suggested enlisting the house with Sandra, the real estate agent who helped us find and buy the house, to help us sell it now.
She was kind and lovely....
He had a chat with her and she cursorily mentioned that she too thought that we can get $750,000 for the house...
A profit of around $250,000 in about three years... Jules was ecstatic with it....
But... I knew it is NOT a good idea....
You see....
I wanted to ask for the house $1,000,000
And I KNEW, that the combined belief held by Jules AND Sandra, will be stronger than my own....
At the time, we had a Japanese teacher, called Chiho San, teaching us the beauty of the Japanese language.
Her husband just got his real estate license, and when she heard that we plan to sell the house, she had her husband run a valuation estimate, based on comparative sales in our area.
He came up with $700,000
Jules asked me what do I think about enlisting the house with Chiho San's husband?....
I took Jules to lunch and confessed to him the truth..... MY TRUTH.....
I told him that I think that the house is worth one million dollars.
That it is a fabulous and unique house... A one of a kind.... A treasure... And that I do not think that Sandra, or Chiho San's husband, can help me get the price that I want.
I spoke with him about the fact that if they do not believe as strongly as I do, that it is worth that amount, or even MORE.... They will not be able to help me get it....
Jules looked at me as if I lost my mind....
My estimate was sky high, he said.... It holds no ground in reality... Or fit with the logic of the market place....
My heart sank.... I knew the power of collectively held ideas... And I KNEW, that in order to make it happen, I needed on MY SIDE, somebody powerful..... Somebody who will not even blink an eye, at an asking price of a million dollar...
I knew exactly who I needed.....
There were only two power real-estate brokers in Miami at the time.
One who specialize mostly in oceanfront properties on Miami Beach, and another who sold houses in Coral Gables also.
I gave her a call.
I asked Jules to sit in the meeting.... BUT.... To suspend all judgements and to say NOTHING!!!!!
To let me do ALL the talking....
She came to our house in her tailored business suit and her fancy car.
She looked around and did not even blinked an eye, when I said that I was thinking of 1.1 or 1.2 millions as an asking price,........ but that I will take as low as 1 million.
She sat down elegantly and wrote our agreement.
She said that house is definitely worth it......
She said that it is up to me, how to handle the asking price.
She said that I can list the house for 1.2 millions and be willing to negotiate with the buyers and lower my price..... OR... I can list it for one million and not budge an inch....
She said that listing it at one million, will show the house in more Internet searches, for people who cap their searches at one million.... She added that it will help us sell the house faster, but that it is totally up to us.
Jules was sitting there with his mouth open.... But his inner business man, told his to believe now... And he was smiling and nodding unbelievably...
I told the agent that we want to sell fast.
I said that we will list it for one million and not negotiate a discount.
The meeting was over....
We shook hands and the broker said that she will send her photographer and video man, over the next day, and take great photos for a virtual tour of the house for her website.
After she left, Jules hugged me goodbye and went back to work.
He was still skeptical, but elated at the possibility....
A few hours after she left, the broker called me.
She said that another agent in her office, has clients that are looking for EXACTLY the kind of house that we have.
They have just lost a house that they liked, because they hesitated for too long, and they are so keen at the description, that they want to come and see our house NOW.
Do I mind if they come?
I said of course they can come....
Should I leave the house to give them privacy to examine the house without me there?
She said yes!
She suggested that I go get a cup of coffee, and said that her associated agent will call me when she had finished showing the house to her clients.
I tidied things up, grabbed my bag and disappeared into town.
I did not keep my hopes up, simply because we just listed the house a few hours ago.
We did not even get it photographed or listed anywhere....
The buyers came and loved the house.... They loved it SO much, that the next day we had an offer on our table.
Jules, by now confident that it is NOT a dream...... But that it is actually happening,...... did not agree to negotiate at all.
I convinced him, to give a small discount as a gesture of good will....
We sold the house for $999,000 in ONE SINGLE day....
P.S.
Two things I'd like to mention here.
I did not mention the actual numbers to impress or discourage anyone.
They are in the note merely for the sake of accuracy, openness and honesty.
So if you are an unemployed poet, PLEASE do not send me venomous messages about money and the evilness of it.... Just delete me as a friend, because I will keep on mentioning anything I feel is needed to be shared....
Some people asked me about how I built my riches....
They asked me to write about it.
This experience above, was a major stepping stone on my path.
Realizing that you can make it happen by taking calculated chances and by believing in yourself and trusting your own intuition.
You can make it happen with ideas and with learning how to work with TRUTH PRINCIPLES, despite what others, even your own husband may believe.
And the other P.S.
After this, Jules was beating himself up, for not joining me in belief, and for not asking 1.2 millions..... Because the house sold TOO FAST.....
I told him that we should NEVER be unhappy or second guess, the Universe, when it gives us EXACTLY what we want..... I said that we should be grateful and happy, when we get what we want and FAST!
It can be a powerful force, to unite with others in thoughts and intentions for a good cause, but it can be very limiting, to unite with others in a collective illusion, and to subconsciously fall into collectively held limiting ideas.
You can take this concept of collectively held limiting ideas, from the 'belief' in recession, and unemployment.... All the way to deeper levels, like the collectively held beliefs in the aging of the body, instead of merely stages of change and transformation..... To the collectively held beliefs in sickness and in death.... and the validity of their reality....
But I will not get into these depths here.
I will give a simpler, less controversial and easier to contemplate earthly example about selling a house.
Years ago, right after our marriage, my husband Jules and I, decided to sell our previous homes and to buy a house together.
We decided that we wanted our new space, to be clear of our past divorces, the argument the walls of our houses have heard.... And to build a new nest together.
We wanted a spacious house in a quiet and beautiful neighborhood and to honor the fact that I am a busy artist, and needed a light filled separate studio space.
We narrowed our search to two neighborhoods in Miami.
Coconut Grove and Coral Gables.
In Coral Gables, which is a lovely neighborhood with tree lined streets and spanish architecture, we found a beautiful home that fitted us to perfection.
We bought it on a large mortgage for $500,000
Being an artist, I put much creativity into the house.
We redesigned the house and accentuated its beauty,..... resurfaced the swimming pool, added dragon sculptures, spitting water into the pool, large urns filled with flowers... We planted a meditation garden and upgraded some elements of the interior..... Including some unique paint washes I did on the walls.
Our investment was mostly in creative thinking, not much in terms of out of pocket cash cost.
After three years, we decided to sell the house.
We wanted to move out of the city and to live in a rural place.... To be surrounded with natural beauty and birds.
We talked about how to handle selling the house.
The inevitable question came up, of how much to ask for the house....
Jules said that the real estate market had increased, but we only owned the house for three years..... Yes, we made improvements,...... but still....how much can you add for that?
Jules said that he would be happy with asking $750,000 for the house.
I felt dispirited.
I was buying the local newspaper, and seeing houses down our street and close by, with much higher asking prices, and I knew that none of them were as lovely as ours....
But without Jules being on board with me.... I knew that I will not be able to make it happen....
Jules suggested enlisting the house with Sandra, the real estate agent who helped us find and buy the house, to help us sell it now.
She was kind and lovely....
He had a chat with her and she cursorily mentioned that she too thought that we can get $750,000 for the house...
A profit of around $250,000 in about three years... Jules was ecstatic with it....
But... I knew it is NOT a good idea....
You see....
I wanted to ask for the house $1,000,000
And I KNEW, that the combined belief held by Jules AND Sandra, will be stronger than my own....
At the time, we had a Japanese teacher, called Chiho San, teaching us the beauty of the Japanese language.
Her husband just got his real estate license, and when she heard that we plan to sell the house, she had her husband run a valuation estimate, based on comparative sales in our area.
He came up with $700,000
Jules asked me what do I think about enlisting the house with Chiho San's husband?....
I took Jules to lunch and confessed to him the truth..... MY TRUTH.....
I told him that I think that the house is worth one million dollars.
That it is a fabulous and unique house... A one of a kind.... A treasure... And that I do not think that Sandra, or Chiho San's husband, can help me get the price that I want.
I spoke with him about the fact that if they do not believe as strongly as I do, that it is worth that amount, or even MORE.... They will not be able to help me get it....
Jules looked at me as if I lost my mind....
My estimate was sky high, he said.... It holds no ground in reality... Or fit with the logic of the market place....
My heart sank.... I knew the power of collectively held ideas... And I KNEW, that in order to make it happen, I needed on MY SIDE, somebody powerful..... Somebody who will not even blink an eye, at an asking price of a million dollar...
I knew exactly who I needed.....
There were only two power real-estate brokers in Miami at the time.
One who specialize mostly in oceanfront properties on Miami Beach, and another who sold houses in Coral Gables also.
I gave her a call.
I asked Jules to sit in the meeting.... BUT.... To suspend all judgements and to say NOTHING!!!!!
To let me do ALL the talking....
She came to our house in her tailored business suit and her fancy car.
She looked around and did not even blinked an eye, when I said that I was thinking of 1.1 or 1.2 millions as an asking price,........ but that I will take as low as 1 million.
She sat down elegantly and wrote our agreement.
She said that house is definitely worth it......
She said that it is up to me, how to handle the asking price.
She said that I can list the house for 1.2 millions and be willing to negotiate with the buyers and lower my price..... OR... I can list it for one million and not budge an inch....
She said that listing it at one million, will show the house in more Internet searches, for people who cap their searches at one million.... She added that it will help us sell the house faster, but that it is totally up to us.
Jules was sitting there with his mouth open.... But his inner business man, told his to believe now... And he was smiling and nodding unbelievably...
I told the agent that we want to sell fast.
I said that we will list it for one million and not negotiate a discount.
The meeting was over....
We shook hands and the broker said that she will send her photographer and video man, over the next day, and take great photos for a virtual tour of the house for her website.
After she left, Jules hugged me goodbye and went back to work.
He was still skeptical, but elated at the possibility....
A few hours after she left, the broker called me.
She said that another agent in her office, has clients that are looking for EXACTLY the kind of house that we have.
They have just lost a house that they liked, because they hesitated for too long, and they are so keen at the description, that they want to come and see our house NOW.
Do I mind if they come?
I said of course they can come....
Should I leave the house to give them privacy to examine the house without me there?
She said yes!
She suggested that I go get a cup of coffee, and said that her associated agent will call me when she had finished showing the house to her clients.
I tidied things up, grabbed my bag and disappeared into town.
I did not keep my hopes up, simply because we just listed the house a few hours ago.
We did not even get it photographed or listed anywhere....
The buyers came and loved the house.... They loved it SO much, that the next day we had an offer on our table.
Jules, by now confident that it is NOT a dream...... But that it is actually happening,...... did not agree to negotiate at all.
I convinced him, to give a small discount as a gesture of good will....
We sold the house for $999,000 in ONE SINGLE day....
P.S.
Two things I'd like to mention here.
I did not mention the actual numbers to impress or discourage anyone.
They are in the note merely for the sake of accuracy, openness and honesty.
So if you are an unemployed poet, PLEASE do not send me venomous messages about money and the evilness of it.... Just delete me as a friend, because I will keep on mentioning anything I feel is needed to be shared....
Some people asked me about how I built my riches....
They asked me to write about it.
This experience above, was a major stepping stone on my path.
Realizing that you can make it happen by taking calculated chances and by believing in yourself and trusting your own intuition.
You can make it happen with ideas and with learning how to work with TRUTH PRINCIPLES, despite what others, even your own husband may believe.
And the other P.S.
After this, Jules was beating himself up, for not joining me in belief, and for not asking 1.2 millions..... Because the house sold TOO FAST.....
I told him that we should NEVER be unhappy or second guess, the Universe, when it gives us EXACTLY what we want..... I said that we should be grateful and happy, when we get what we want and FAST!
