What’s The Point?

What is the POINT?

SERIOUSLY. Why are we here?

Our parents had sex and we were conceived and born… that’s a fact. But it doesn’t answer the age old human question of

“Why am I here?”

Closely followed by…

“Now that I AM here, What’s the point of being here?”

Were we just the result of some random genetic matching and meeting on the cellular level?

Are we here to simply pass our genetic code on to another hapless generation of “accidental tourists?”

Or are we here for a purpose…

• Are we here to experience the full pleasure attainable through our five senses?
• Touch and sexual ecstasy?
• The sound of a soft rain falling through spring leaves? The sound of the ocean, the sound of a symphony, a rave, a lullaby? Birdsong? The wind in the pines?
• Are we here to see? To drink in the visual wonder all around us? The sight of snow capped mountains rising majestically above a pristine alpine lake? The sight of millions of brightly colored tulips in full bloom on a perfect May morning? Sunlight bouncing blindingly off of newly fallen snow?
• The sight, sound and scent of flaming autumn leaves falling around us and crunching underfoot?
• The taste of a perfectly ripe piece of fruit in season?

The pride of accomplishment? Creating or doing something that has yet to be created or done?

Are we here to gather to ourselves honor among others?

Are we here to rise to the “top” of our field, or the top of our local government or sport or academic or professional discipline or national or international leadership?

Are we here to make money? Lots and lots of money?

Are we here to make history?

Are we here to be the best parents, lovers, partners, caretakers, teachers that we can be?

SERIOUSLY!  I WANT TO KNOW!!! What the hell is the point of being here NOW?

We are here for such a short moment in the vastness of Eternity. IS THERE A POINT? OR IS IT ALL A COSMIC ROLL OF THE DICE?

And while we ask these questions we also have to ask, what’s the big deal about MONEY?

They say Money can’t buy love or happiness? But it is universally coveted. Why are we all so enamored of money? Why is money such a big deal? And why do we get pretty much ZERO training about how to create and manage wealth in our educational system?

Because ultimately money allows us to fulfill our potential… and it can serve as a self perpetuating positive reinforcement loop. And if EVERYBODY knew about money and how to create and sustain it, it might not allow the powers that run this world to have such a free rein…

Personally, I get a little bit screwed up around all of this because money doesn’t really motivate me. What motivates me is what I can do with money and what value I can contribute to other people… The challenge is that one of the things I do best, write and perform songs has an extremely nebulous “value”. What does a song really do? What’s a song actually worth? For that matter how do you come up with a value or price for Hypnosis or NLP?

How do you exchange the value in a song or in a process of transformation with the value that someone else with a different set of skills and value added abilities has?

And what’s the point of writing songs that no one hears? For me the point HAS to be more than “entertainment”.  The music HAS to be able to do more than distract a person for a few moments from their problems. I want to write songs that cause people to measurably improve their lives as a result of listening to them… but theres more to it even than that…

I keep coming back to the idea that I was born to touch the lives of millions of people with my music, my message and my methods.

But is that what I really want? Or is that what I think I’m supposed to want just because my music seems to be good enough to be paid attention to??

Here are my thoughts about this for me. What your mission and/or purpose is, is up to you. Please use my story for one example then apply this to your life ok?

My MISSION: To positively influence the lives of millions of men and women with my music, message and methods of personal transformation that allow them to improve their lives… and everything in their lives: their minds, bodies, careers, bank accounts, relationships etc.,  into something that they recognize as improvement and to facilitate an exchange of value around all of that… in a win/win/win way.

Is my mission then, my purpose? Or is my purpose something greater than that?

My purpose is to live up to my potential in every area of my life.

My purpose is to do life as well as I can possibly do life. Because it is a rare gift. Awareness is a gift. Perception is a gift. This is what has been bestowed upon us all.

This gift of awareness and perception and the ability to make choices and take action.

Whatever we get is whatever we are willing to go for.

All the old cliches pour in:

“You miss 100% of the shots you don’t make.”
“Success leaves behind clues.”
“There’s room at the top.”
“Whatever you can conceive and believe, you can achieve.”

But are the shots you’re taking the ones you want to be making?
Are you on the path that will ultimately serve your greatest good and the greatest good of others?

No one can answer those questions for us.

What we CAN do is imagine our last days on this planet and reflecting back on all the things we didn’t actually give ourselves permission to totally and completely “go for”.

What is that for you?

And somewhere in there you might find your life’s purpose. And it may simply be watching your children grow up, start families of their own and seeing your grand children thrive and grow in turn…

It might be expanding some area of scientific endeavor that forever changes the world.

It might be contributing in some small or large way in solving one of the many challenges facing the human race.

It could be as simple as growing a beautiful garden.

Knitting a sweater.

Writing a poem.

Exploring the world.

Building a business.

Building a house, a sustainable farm, making the best raw milk cheddar cheese on the planet…

Whatever it is that YOU desire to have, do or be is fine. My job, perhaps my purpose, my mission, whatever, is to support YOU in your quest for YOUR purpose with my music, my message and my methods. So that you can experience what you desire, faster, easier and better, than if you didn’t have my assistance.

That is, IF you want it. If not that’s fair and fine as well. Not everybody even thinks about this stuff. But for me, personally, as well as for the clients and NLP students I’ve taught since 2003, thinking about this stuff is EXHILERATING. And YOU are who I’m writing for today. People like YOU who are willing to ask these big questions and willing to do the work to actually put these ideas into practice in your life.

My message today is this: Whatever you think your purpose for being here on this planet is, you are right. Because your purpose is what YOU DECIDE it is. No one else can dictate that for you. And your purpose can be developed over time. And it can change. And you can have more than one. But the bottom line is that with a clear purpose you can make daily decisions that take you closer to the place where you are increasingly and then consistently living “ON PURPOSE”.

Why? Because it FEELS really, really good. And we get what we focus on. So have a little faith my eager Padawans… You ARE here for a reason…

Your assignment today, should you choose to accept it, is to DECIDE what that reason is. It doesn’t have to be a final decision. But just give this a try for today.

Live the entire rest of your day AS IF, you are “on purpose.”
Live today as if you were born for something special.
Live this entire day as if all of your thoughts, intentions and actions were for something worth the investment of your time, energy and attention.

And see how it feels. Let me know ok?

What if you were truly born for a purpose greater than taking up space and watching certain TV shows?

What if you were here for a reason and you get to decide the reason?

The cool thing is no one gets to tell you otherwise. This is YOUR ride. You decide what it means and where it’s headed.

My “Method” today is to suggest to you that you take a few moments to breathe, ground yourself and imagine today unfolding magically in ways that confirm your purpose. Create a vivid mental movie of what it is that you most desire to have, do or be. Then go all IMAX with it! Make it huge and compelling. Turn up the volume! Tune up the colors! Sharpen up the focus! Play with slow motion and fast motion. Play with your imaginary ZOOM lenses… pull back the camera so you can see the big picture, zoom in to see the inspiring details… pull back the camera so you can see yourself in the picture… then step back in and look through your own eyes… make if vivid and compelling. Repeat as necessary.

If doubt creeps in simply shrink the doubt pics down and move them off your mental movie screen and pull up the DESIRED image/movie again and again and again… all day. Just keep holding your vision in your mind’s eye. Turn down the volume of the “doubt voices” and the internalized “dream thieves”.

And to support you musically,

Here’s a transformation tune (the final encore, and the last raw live recording from the “Last Concert of Mark Shepard and the Rogue Mystics” on November 19th.

Enjoy!

Peace and groovyness!

– Mark

p.s. Tomorrow? I just may have the first video from the Concert… I just got to see a rough edit and I literally got chills as the Rogue Mystics filled all the nooks and crannies around my vocal and guitar with stunning musical brilliance… and my son Andrew, who is doing the editing reports that the song is causing some very positive, inspirational things to happen inside HIM as he’s gotten it deeply embedded in his psyche…

If you are ready and would like to go deeper with me… here’s how

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