Author: Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
Publisher: Berkley Trade
Year Published: 1995
Rating:
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In The Aladdin Factor, Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen of Chicken Soup for the Soul fame lay out a framework for asking for and receiving what you want. You may know Jack Canfield as one of the teachers of The Secret or the Law of Attraction. Unlike with The Secret, The Aladdin Factor isn’t concerned with the metaphysical (for instance, all you have to do is ask the Universe for what you want and wait for it to happen.) Rather, it takes the much more direct approach: become clear about what you want then ask people who have the means to help you to guide you towards your goals.

The book starts with a list of five reasons why people don’t get what they want.

1. Ignorance – Often, people don’t get what they want because they don’t know what to ask for. Perhaps this is due to lack of clarity about what they want, or perhaps they don’t know what’s possible or what resources are available.
2. Limiting beliefs – Our beliefs are a product of the experiences we’ve had with parents, teachers, peers, colleagues, social circles, and the media. In many cases, we hold inaccurate beliefs about what is actually possible based on our previous experiences.
3. Fear – We often let fear hold us back from asking for what we want. Types of fears include fear of rejection, being humiliated, feeling powerless, abandonment, looking like a fool, and so forth.
4. Low self-esteem – Sometimes, we feel unworthy of receiving what we are asking for.
5. Pride – We tend to not want to admit that we need help and support because asking makes us feel inadequate.

The authors offer several exercises to help you become clear about what you want and then have the courage to ask for help. The core foundations include: knowing what you really want, believing you are worthy of receiving what you want, being optimistic and passionate about your desires, taking action in the face of fear, and being persistent.

If you’ve been struggling with achieving your goals, The Aladdin Factor will give you the tools to successfully approach others for help, guidance, and mentorship. As the authors say, “What’s the worst that can happen?” If they say “no,” you are no worse off than when you started. But if they say “yes,” you’re one step closer to achieving your goals.

In the first interview, Joe Vitale discusses what he considers his secret to life. If you’ve never heard of Joe Vitale, he’s well known in internet marketing circles as a great copywriter. (His website is MrFire.com.) He’s known for having written a number of books including The Attractor Factor, Zero Limits, Life’s Missing Instruction Manual, Hypnotic Writing, Buying Trances, and How to Write and Publish Your Own eBook in as Little as 7 Days.

Yes, he’s a busy bee cranking out great marketing – and more recently, metaphysical – books at a rate of at least 2-3 per year. I’ve read most of them because, from a marketing perspective, Joe knows what he’s doing. He’s a great copywriter that knows how to write conversationally, pull people into the story, and lead them through his main points so they walk away feeling like they’ve gotten great benefit. Yes, that means he’s a fantastic salesman as well, and if you aren’t careful, your first purchase will soon lead to buying more of his stuff. Of course, that’s what he wants – but at least he’s upfront about telling you what he’s doing.

Anyway, one of the things I like about Joe’s responses (and his Attractor Factor philosophy) is his focus on being happy now. That all the stuff you wish for won’t make you happy. That outside influences won’t make you happy. Only you can choose to be happy right now.

It’s a matter of realizing you’re totally fine right now where you are at but you are probably living like a king or a queen compared to people in 3rd world countries or people in our past history. You are probably living this lifestyle that other people if they saw would be totally envious of, and we don’t pause and appreciate it because we want more, more, more, and more.

It’s so easy to fall into that trap of always wanting the next latest-and-greatest thing. If only we had more money, a better relationship, better health, a new home, we’d be happy. But then, we get what we want and we still aren’t happy. Or our happiness is fleeting and soon we’re fixated on yet another thing we want.

Now, you might be saying, sure, that sounds great, but you don’t understand my situation. Perhaps you’ve just been diagnosed with cancer or your ex left or you’ve just filed for bankruptcy. How can you be happy now? Joe responds -

whatever is going on right now, if it looks absolutely horrible in your life, one year from now or certainly five years from now, or certainly 10 years from now, you will look back at this moment in time and you will find a good way of looking at it.

Every time we experience pain, it’s an opportunity for us to grow. Life isn’t always a bed of roses. You can’t eliminate all bad things and only have good things. But you do have control over your thoughts, feelings and actions – and it’s up to you to learn what you need to learn and move on with your life. The situation can only make you stronger.

Other advice from Joe:

• See opportunities in everything. He says that from a marketing perspective, every time he hears a complaint, he thinks of it as an opportunity to product a product that will help that person.
• Think optimistically. If you know that in hindsight, you’ll see your biggest obstacles were the ones that shaped who you are today, why not think like that right now? If you’re going through challenging times, how can you use that to help others? How can you turn your obstacles into opportunities right now?
• To change your outcome, you must change yourself from the inside out. If you’re holding on to limiting beliefs, it’s up to you to do some personal development work and let go of them. You can change, but you must want to change – that’s your responsibility. You must take 100% responsibility for your life. No one can do it for you.
• One way to change your thinking is to start asking better questions. When you ask negative questions like “what’s wrong with me” or “what if things go bad” or “what if things don’t turn around next week” or “why can’t I”, you condition your brain to respond in a pessimistic way. Instead, turn the questions around and ask things like “what are some ways to raise money to pay my bills” or “what are some things I can do right now to change the situation.” Your brain will then be focused on answering these questions, and you’ll be much more likely to solve your problem. Instead of asking “why can’t I,” ask “how can I.”
• Focus is key. If you’re looking to manifest something into your life, you must keep your attention and focus on that object. If you lose focus – and stop visualizing or focusing on your goals – you’ll slow down the process tremendously.
• Don’t be attached to the outcome, or in other words “You can have whatever you want in life as long as you don’t need it.” The more desperate you are for something, the less likely you are to get it. You must let go of your notion that it’s a “life or death” situation and you’ll die if you don’t get it. You won’t. You’ll make it to the end of the month. You’ll find a way.

Joe also offers some advice on marketing. I work with a lot of professional services clients who are uncomfortable with the concepts of marketing and selling. They feel it’s manipulative or unprofessional. Joe says

this is not about manipulation or persuasion or brow beating people or the old used car salesmen mentality or way of being. This is all about finding the target audience who most wants your product or service. That’s really what marketing is. It’s finding that target audience, that’s already got a mind set looking for your product or service, it’s just that match is where the sale takes place and marketing is just telling them both about it.

He then goes into a story about a woman who raved about the movie What the Bleep Do We Know. This woman recommended the movie to everyone that would listen to her. Now, most people wouldn’t classify this as “marketing” – but she was! She was spreading the word about why she liked this movie and why others should see it. That’s marketing.

If you strongly believe in the benefits of your products and services, and you know they can help people, it’s your job to communicate that message and passion to others who might benefit. That’s marketing. There’s nothing sleazy about it. Now, if you don’t believe in what you’re selling, that’s a different story, and perhaps you should look into finding something different to sell. If you’re not 100% sold on what you offer, how can you hope to show others the benefits?

I encourage you to check out the interview. Again, it’s free and at MastersOfTheSecret.com.

I joined the webcast rather than the conference call and had a few access problems, so I didn’t quite catch the first few minutes. Luckily, the connection soon steadied and I was able to listen to the rest of the call without problems.

Rhonda came across as a very positive and loving woman who really does want to spread love and joy throughout the world. I’ve seen her on Oprah and in The Secret movie, but in this interview, she opened up to fellow Secret star and Chicken Soup for the Woman’s Soul author, Marci Shimoff. Perhaps that’s because she knew Marci wouldn’t be asking the difficult questions.

Rhonda started out with her story behind The Secret. Her biggest problem when doing The Secret movie was lack of money but she claims that she “just knew” how things would turn out and trusted in that outcome. As she tells it, the more she “had faith” in her vision of the outcome, the more the Universe delivered.

For instance, when she and her team were filming in Aspen, this was the only time they had two cameras. One team member suggested they set up the second camera to film profiles of each of the speakers, since they weren’t doing much with it. Later on, as they were editing, that footage became an integral part of the film. Rhonda chalks it up to moving towards her vision and having faith that things will work out when things seem uncertain.

That was a key point throughout her talk. Rhonda strongly believes that action is simply allowing yourself to receive. When asked to clarify, she stressed the importance of feelings over thoughts. You must believe and feel that you are receiving what you want right now and feel good about it today. She claims that if you go out and try to make things happen, it’s telling the Universe that you don’t actually have faith.

She explains that when she went to write The Secret book, she visualized the joy she wanted to share with the world. Only when she felt the emotions to the point where tears welled up in her eyes did she sit down and start writing. Instead of making a book happen, she received everything she was asking for and let the love flow from the Universe, through her, and into the book.

If you’ve read other Secret teachers’ books – like Jack Canfield’s The Success Principles or James Arthur Ray’s The Science of Success – you know that this is a departure from what they teach. They believe that action is required to get from point A to point B (and I agree.)

The Secret movie also seems to imply that you don’t need “faith” for things to happen. As long as you believe, you receive. It’s a “universal law” and scientific. Rhonda’s comments tend to blow that theory out of the water.

Instead, Rhonda speaks of the law of attraction as if it’s a supernatural force – that universal genie – that grants your wish as if by magic. I was amazed how many times she talked about “having faith” that you are creating your own reality – just by visualizing and feeling joy and believing it will become reality. Then, you sit around and wait until you are compelled by the Universe to take action (like she did with her book). When you take action without that inspiration, she claims it “makes the journey harder.”

Wow. If that’s the case, I should have won that Powerball jackpot numerous times. I certainly sat around visualizing myself receiving that big check and what my life would look like if I was a multi-millionaire. I’m certain I’m not the only one. Or all the times as a kid I wished it would snow enough for school to close… why didn’t we have more snow days?

Here’s a quick summary of some of the other points she covered:

• Pay attention whenever you say “I am”. That is usually an indication that you’re about to state something you believe. So if you state “I am broke” or “I am tired,” that’s what you’ll create in your life.
• Take full responsibility for your life. “You created it.” If something bad happens, don’t look at it as a challenge that’s separate from you. You can change it in a moment just by thinking something better. Look for the gift in the challenge.
• Give. Rhonda often stressed over money when creating The Secret. She claims that she felt best when she’d give it away to people on the street – even though she really needed it. She found that when she gave, she felt better about money.
• Visualize what you want before you go to bed each night. Think about how you want the day to unfold and how it could be the best day of your life.
• Decide to be happy now. Fill yourself with love and joy. You must fill yourself up in order to give.
• Feel gratitude every day. Gratitude is an expression of love.
• You have the freedom to choose what you want. No one else is the authority over you. It’s up to you to decide what you want.

Rhonda stayed mum on her new project. She couldn’t disclose the details due to a confidentiality agreement and couldn’t give us an idea of when to expect it. She did share that her intention is to bring joy to the world.

As I mentioned at the start, there wasn’t a lot that was new with this telecast. If you saw The Secret movie or read the book, you know the gist. I was somewhat disappointed that Marci didn’t press Rhonda on certain issues – like Oprah did with Esther Hicks on her radio show last week. I’m guessing that’s why Rhonda agreed to do this interview, since she’s been noticeably absent from the media since her last appearance on Oprah.

This interview was virtually all positive PR for Rhonda who has been accused of using The Secret to promote materialistic goods rather than eliminating the bad stuff (disease, violence, poverty) from the world. Rhonda played up her compassionate side – and for the most part, came across as genuinely compassionate and caring… though a bit naïve that “all you need is love” to cure the ailments of the world.

Esther Hicks on Oprah’s XM Radio show

The Secret: The Law of Attraction | MySpace Video

I agree to a point. Yes, it’s difficult to hit a moving target. If you don’t know what you want, chances are, you won’t ever get it… or if you do, you’ll stumble over it by accident and then realize that’s what you’ve wanted.

Think of it this way. If you were to plan a vacation, you must first decide where you want to go before you start making the travel arrangments and the hotel accomodations. If you never decide on your location, it’s much harder to plan in advance. Yes, you can always do a road trip, stopping along the way at random hotels, restaurants, and local attractions. But you can’t really plan your trip like you’d be able to if you decided you’d be going to Disney World in Florida.

If you’re curious about Abraham and how Esther and Jerry claim they came to dialog with these beings, you can listen to a series of free mp3s on her website. I have to admit that I love her voice as “Abraham”.

Oprah’s been talking with Esther Hicks on her radio program. Listen to part 1.Esther Hicks on Oprah's XM Radio show

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Listen to part 2.Part 2 Esther Hicks on Oprah's XM Radio show aired 04/05/07

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If you’ve been following the launch, they came out with this program for $2000 and created what they consider a “generous” affiliate program. When I first saw it, red sirens went off in my head screaming things like “multi-level scam” and “snake oil salesmen”.

It didn’t really surprise me that they would have created this type of program. After all, both guys are serious marketers, so they know how to milk a product for all it’s worth. Canfield has something like 80 different flavors of the Chicken Soul for the Soul books out there. Bob Proctor’s been speaking on the motivational/get rich circuit for quite some time.

Two things did surprise me – the cost of the program at a whopping $2000 and the affiliate program, which they’ve been marketing heavily. It works this way. You purchase the program for $2000 and get access to all these affiliate tools to use to market the program to your friends, family and colleagues. For each sale, you get $500. If anyone you refer then refers their friend, family or colleague to their own site, you get a 2nd tier commission of $250. So, to make your money back, you just need to sell 4 copies (you get $500×4=$2000) – or sell 2 and get those two people to each sell 2 (you get $500×2 + $250×4 = $2000).

Bob Proctor Introduces the Science of Getting Rich Program
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My first thought was – do people really buy these programs? Apparently they do. One woman I know purchased hers the first week the program came out and had made $4000 in 2 weeks through the affiliate program. Wow. But can it last?

What’s great for Bob Proctor and Jack Canfield about this program is that they don’t have to do the marketing themselves. They have an army of sales people to get out there and sell – and this army is extremely motivated. After all, they just plunked down $2000 on a program they probably couldn’t afford and now they need to make serious cash.

They claim it’s a great business model – they provide you with the product and the marketing materials. Now, you just have to sell.

Michael Beckwith Introduces the Science of Getting Rich Program
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I wish marketing was that easy. Really, I do. But there comes a point when everyone’s offering the exact same thing in the exact same way and it just stops being effective. I’m sure this program hasn’t reached critical mass yet – but given the competition for clicks on pay per click search engines, there’s lots of competition already. The savvier marketers have already started promoting their affiliate link on YouTube, Google, MySpace, and other popular sites. I can only imagine that as more people join this program, the cost per click will soar.

I’m also uncertain whether this is the “official” program that is endorsed by Rhonda Byrne or if it’s a side project of Proctor and Canfield. When the site first launched, it claimed to be the “official teachings on The Secret”. One day, the site mysteriously went dark – they claimed they had just had a “soft launch” – and a few days later, the new site emerged with slightly different copy and no picture of Michael Beckwith. (I still don’t know why he left.)

I, personally, won’t be purchasing the program. I have no idea what content they are including, but I suspect it’s similar to Bob Proctor’s Science of Getting Rich program. But I am an affiliate – you can be too if you sign up here. The basic affiliate program is free. (Hey – I’m working to make $30/day by day 30 of my experiment. If I only sell 2 of these “big ticket items”, I’ll have made my goal for the month!)

So, if you’re in the market for this program, please consider purchasing through my link. While my article probably won’t convince you to buy, but maybe these promo videos they’re giving out will!

Jack Canfield Introduces the Science of Getting Rich Program
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At least he doesn’t say dumb stuff like Bob Proctor’s ridiculous quote:

“If you don’t understand [the law of attraction] that doesn’t mean you should reject it. You don’t understand electricity, probably. First of all, no one even knows what electricity is…Do you know how it works? I don’t know how it works, but I do know this: you can cook a man’s dinner with it, and you can also cook the man.”

Perhaps Bob doesn’t have time to mosey on over to How Stuff Works and spend a few minutes reading how electricity works… guess he doesn’t really want to know. Or maybe he just doesn’t care. [And yes, this matters and is relevant - especially if you want to talk about how on the micro level, we're all electrons or energy or vibrating or attracting stuff... shouldn't you at least learn basic physics if you're going to make comparisons?]

But that’s a digression.

James Ray is of the camp that believes that taking action is a fundamental component to success. I completely agree with that. Actually, I found myself agreeing with most of his philosophy on the call he did with Alex Mandossian tonight.

First up, he mentions the five qualities of successful people. These are:

1) Intention – or what is it that you want? When most people answer this, they respond with what they don’t want because they’ve never really thought about it.

2) Attention – We can only attract or manifest an intention if we maintain focus on this. It’s not enough to simply want something and then forget about it until something reminds us of it five months later.

3) Energy – You have to put energy into getting what you want. Usually, that means giving. As he says, “the more you give, the more you get.”

4) Belief – You have to believe in what you’re intending. For businesses, that means you must believe in your own ability to achieve your goals, that your product or service is beneficial to the market, and that your industry provides a valuable service to the world. For personal relationships, that means you must believe that you are contributing your best to the relationship, that your significant other also is, and that together, you both are creating something of value for the environment in which you live.

5) Growth – Another of James’ points was that “if you’re not growing, you are dying.” Or, if you intend for something to happen, you must grow into the type pf person capable of handling that intention. If you want to run a multi-million dollar company, you must grow into the successful leader who can manage that type of company.

I also liked James’ point that you need more than just your thoughts and feelings – you also need to take action. You can’t sit in your home visualizing $1 million to drop in your lap. You must actually do something to make it happen.

I think this is where he differs from most law of attraction proponents who think that it’s fundamentally about your “vibrational harmony” with whatever you want to attract to yourself – and where I think he actually agrees with law of attraction critics like Mark Joyner of Simpleology.com.

In lesson one of Simpleology (which is free over at his site), Mark demonstrates his “law of straight lines” which states that the shortest distance between two points is a straight line. He then asks you to try an absurd experiment. You’ll need a stop watch and a glass of water. You’ll goal is to take a sip of water. In method #1 which he labels “voodoo”, you are to fix you attention on the glass of water, close your eyes and say an affirmation or prayer that asks “the universal god force to manifest this water in my mouth” and then sit there and hope the universe answers back “your wish is my command.” You can yell or sweet talk or think positively about the water. Of course, by the end of the water doesn’t end up in your mouth. In method #2, the straight line method, you simply pick up the glass of water and take a sip.

Yes, it’s meant to be tongue in cheek, but it does a great job of highlighting the absurdity of the “wishful thinking” people out there who want something for nothing.

James also makes some good points about goal setting. If you’re going to create a goal, it must be specific, measurable, and create passion in you. His example is that he wants to bring his program to every country in the world. Currently, he’s in the 80s (I don’t remember off hand the exact number he mentioned), but that’s about 45% of the way to his goal. It’s specific and measurable – he knows how many world countries there are, and can calculate his progress. It’s also something that’s important to him and fills him with passion.

The final point James made that I’ll mention here was about what people say. When people tell you they don’t have enough time, that’s just an excuse or a good story. You find the time to do what’s truly valuable to you. You find the money to buy the things that mean the most. That reminded me of one of Rich Schefren’s videos he released before the launch of his most recent coaching program (which I’m a member of).

If you visit The Profit Vault, you can download a free 1 hour 45 minute video called “Gaining Momentum” in which Rich debunks pretty much any excuse you could possibly have for starting your own business. He basically tells you that if you want to create a successful business, you need to get off your duff and do something. And yes, there will be work involved.

Yes, you must become clear about what you want. Yes, visualization is important. Yes, you must believe you will be successful – but you still need to take the appropriate actions to achieve your goals.

Overall, I thought the call was worth listening to – and he certainly sold a boatload of his Success Certain Coaching. I didn’t purchase it, but that’s primarily because I’m involved in two other coaching programs at the moment. If you’re interested in his stuff, check it out.

Best known for his Chicken Soup for the Soul franchise of books, Jack Canfield is a well known motivational speaker and success coach. Most recently, he’s one of the official teachers of The Secret home study course.

In The Success Principles, Jack Canfield shifts from his “ask… believe… achieve” philosophy of The Secret to focus on taking action. He quotes motivational philosopher Jim Rohn and says

“You can’t hire someone else to do your push-ups for you.”" You must do them yourself if you are to get any value out of them. Whether it is exercising, stretching, meditating, reading, studying, learning a new language, creating a mastermind group, setting measurable goals, visualizing success, repeating affirmations, or practicing a new skill, you are going to have to do it. No one else can do these things for you. I will give you the road map, but you will have to drive the car. I will teach you the principles, but you will have to apply them. If you choose to put in the effort, I promise you the rewards will be will worth it.”

It’s nice to see Canfield shift from some of the fluff of The Secret and provide some hard, actionable advice. In fact, the title of chapter one explains that it’s up to you to take 100% responsibility for your life. You’re not entitled to a great life. It’s up to you to create the life you want – and that means taking responsibility for everything in your life from the quality of your relationships, your health, your finances and your feelings. Canfield even tells us “this is not easy” and “if you keep on doing what you’ve always done, you’ll keep on getting what you’ve always got.” If only that was mentioned in The Secret.

In the next few chapters, Canfield walks you through crafting a life’s purpose, becoming clear on what it is you want, believing in yourself, and learning to set goals. One of Canfield’s keys to success is visualization. He quotes a number of professional athletes who visualize their performance perfectly before they get out there and play. If you aren’t sure what to do, he provides clear instructions on adding sounds and feelings, using printed pictures, and using vision boards.

It’s not until Chapter 12 when Canfield first mentions the law of attraction – and even then, it’s a passing reference to explain how one must “act as if” it’s impossible to fail. Or in other words, have confidence and believe in yourself that you’ll make it. But in Chapter 13, he is quick to explain that “talk is cheap” and “nothing happens until you take action.”

Canfield’s book is divided into seven sections: The Fundamentals of Success, Transform Yourself for Success, Build Your Success Team, Create Successful Relationships, Success and Money, and Success Starts Now. The book is massive, coming in at around 450 pages and 64 chapters, but it is well worth reading. This is the missing manual to The Secret that discusses how to overcome your fears, being persistent – even in the face of failure, not denying bad situations, embracing change, and dealing with your inner critic.

Canfield is primarily a motivational coach, so this book is primarily concerned with mindset and how we hold ourselves back. As an executive coach once said to me, “The quickest way to learn about all your inner demons is to start your own business.” Any small business owner soon learns just how much they have to learn – and what weaknesses they have to face – in order just to stay afloat. It happened to me, and I see it with my own clients.

This book is a great overview of the soft skills involved in running a successful business or getting ahead in your career. This isn’t a how to on crafting a successful business plan or ways to market your business, but a primer on mastering yourself, mastering relationships you have with your team, your vendors, your mentors and our clients, and keeping control of your finances. Buy from Amazon.com

I recently took an Executive Coaching class at the University of Pennsylvania. In it, we did a number of exercises designed to help us discover and clarify what our core passions and energizers were. By the end, we had a framework for making life decisions based on our core values – and we put together a purpose statement for our lives.

Most people never take the time to really think about what it is that energizes them. I know from working with numerous clients that few people can answer with clarity what their strengths and passions are. Most don’t really understand the question because they’ve never taken the time to think about what it is they want from life.

John Demartini has put together a 60 day reflection journal for those who’d like to figure out what their dreams are and clarify their vision.

The book is laid out into 60 three-four page lessons that you are to complete one day at a time. Because the lessons are bite sized, you can read the chapter and do the exercises in about 10 minutes. There’s no excuse for you not to keep it up for 60 days.

In each lesson, he explains a law, gives you a short affirmation and then asks you to write that affirmation in your own words. Finally, he asks how you can put this particular lesson into practice.

Unlike much of The Secret and Law of Attraction stuff, Demartini’s laws are quite practical and focus on things like planning your day, providing service to others, aligning yourself with your goals and values, delegating tasks, visualizing success, and various others.

If you’re looking for a self discovery tool, give this book a chance. There’s some good material in here. Buy From Amazon.com

If you’ve never heard of Esther Hicks, she claims to channel spiritual entities called “Abraham” and then teaches Abraham’s messages to the public. I find it somewhat bizarre, but I suppose it fits within the New Age thought movement. I’ve read her Ask & It Is Given book, and it does have some useful teachings in it. That said, I’m a sceptic at heart, so I have a difficult time swallowing that her teachings are supernatural in origin…

Regardless, she answered by posting to her website (I couldn’t find it or I’d link):

As time went by, it became apparent that the television network that we had been told would air “The Secret” was not going to do it, at least not right now, and so the production company began seeking other ways of marketing their beautiful project to recoup their very large investment. While Jerry and I were uncomfortable with what felt to us like a rather aggressive marketing campaign (just not our style, nothing wrong with it) we stayed focused on our busy schedule and really had very little to do with what was happening with “The Secret.”Eventually we received an email from the producer of “The Secret” lovingly explaining (we never have received correspondence from her that was anything other than extremely loving) that the contract that we had all agreed upon and signed was no longer sufficient for their further distribution of the project in the areas they were now seeking to distribute the project, and that it would be necessary for us (Jerry and Esther) to relinquish our intellectual property rights in these areas forever and redo our contract or they would have to reluctantly edit us out. It was clear, from the lovingly written email that they did not want to edit us out, but after conferring with our publisher, and then our intellectual property rights attorney, and finally with Abraham, allowing them to edit us out was the path of least resistance. Abraham’s words were very clear and easy to understand: “Whenever you are given an ultimatum that says, ‘if you don’t do this, then we will have to do such and such,’ it is best that you just let it go and move on. Otherwise there is always another, and this, and this, and this?”

Later, the New York Times followed up with an article stating that Esther and her husband, Jerry, were receiving 10% of the profits of dvd sales. But they’re multimillionaires so the money thing doesn’t bother them.

What the Hickses say bothers them most about the second version of “The Secret” is that those who watch it are not receiving enough explanation of the law or being told that its discovery was made by “vibrationally accessing broader intelligence,” Ms. Hicks said.
Bringing forth the voice of Abraham as she sat on a buttery leather seat in her motor home, speaking of herself in the third person, she said, “Esther’s concern is that they will destroy this information because they do not really know it.”

Perhaps, but in today’s internet age, it’s virtually impossible to contain/supress the flow of ideas. And being on Oprah and covered in every major publication certainly doesn’t help.