John Milton asks the question, “which do you prefer, bondage with ease, or strenuous liberty?” What does he mean? No, this isn´t anything sexual – promise. This is about creating an amazing life that is abundant and prosperous, free and fulfilling.

How do you do that? Most people will take bondage with ease. The majority of the population will remain in the 97% that is struggling and broke, that loves playing the victim and blames everybody else for their financial woes.

Will you be one of the 3% that attains financial freedom? Will you take strenuous liberty? What do you need to do to be one of the 3%.

The first thing you must do is decide unequivocally that you will be in the 3%. No ifs, ands, or buts about it. It´s not open to discussion, it´s not dependent on the economy, the boss or the government. Financial freedom is yours, period.

Once you know that in every cell and fibre of your being, then you can move ahead to acquire the financial freedom. Do you know how much financial freedom is for you? How will you benefit other people with your prosperity? How old will you be? You need to need about this as financial freedom doesn´t happen by accident. It happens by choice, decision and action.

How strenuous does your liberty need to be? That all depends on you. Some refuse to be coached or learn from others so they learn the hard and long way. Others model successful people and sidestep many of the challenges and delays.

I´m always looking at how people are creating their wealth and learning from them. It´s much easier than pioneering the way yourself.

Today, abundance abounds. Mentors that have become very successful financially are everywhere. Pick someone or a number of people who resonate with you and do what they did.

To be free financially is a gift everyone of us is offered in the 21st century. This is unprecedented. Never before can anyone, anywhere, at any age, regardless of gender, become financially free. However, it´s possible today. Is liberty in your near future?

One of the things I gleaned from my parasailing experience in Mexico recently is that it is sometimes best not to know everything. This is indeed me high above the beach in Puerto Vallarta. My friend Marisol took this picture from the boat that was pulling me.

It was only after I landed that she told me how glad she was that I did my parasailing adventure in Puerto Vallarta and not in Mazatlan as I had planned. Apparently, a few people slammed into buildings as they landed and went home in a coffin.

When I showed my dear friend Monique the pictures, she mentioned that as a registered nurse in intensive care for 16 years, she dealt with many people with spinal cord injuries or other serious injuries from parasailing in Mexico. How wonderful that I did not know any of this before going up!

I would say that there are very few things in life, if anything, that does not involve risk. Some people die in their sleep in bed, others die racing cars or flying airplanes. It´s risky…living!

So as you create your dream business or amazing life, know that there are risks. Of course there are. You will make mistakes. You will fail. You will wish you did something that you didn´t. You´ll wish you didn´t do things you did. It´s all part of the learning and growing process.

Naturally, I asked a few logical questions like: How long have you been doing this and does the boat have gas? But seriously, how would I know that he was telling me the truth? At some point in life, we have to take greater risks, trust others, and take the plunge…or in this case the flight.

I honestly believe that it´s easier to not know it all. That means, do I need or want to know how many businesses fail? Do I want to know how little money many entrepreneurs make? Or can you and I just decide what we want and then create it without all the negativity and facts about what is not working and what is.

In today´s economy especially, staying positive is imperative. Focusing on what you want and creating the amazing life you want is necessary if you are going to achieve it.

So just go for it. Don´t over analyze. Trust yourself. Believe in others and know that you can do, have and be whatever you really want.

The other night Greg and I played our most favorite game, Parcheesi. I won 3 games in a row and was revelling in my victory. And I can revel when I am winning! Greg told me that it was the chair I was sitting in. It was a “lucky” chair and if we traded chairs, he said he would win the games. He told me there was an energy vortex that was affecting whoever sat in the “loser´s” chair. Laughing, we switched seats. Sure enough, he won the next three games hands down! He kept on telling me that it was the chair. There was a “winner´s” chair and a “loser´s” chair and I was now in the loser´s chair.

As I watched my winning streak come to an end, I actually began to believe him. Maybe there was something wrong with the energy in this particular chair. Perhaps I couldn´t win if I was sitting in it. As he reinforced this belief in me, I found the doubts starting to come into my head. I joked about it, I laughed it off, I had another glass of wine…but I kept on losing. And the more I lost, the more Greg reinforced the belief in me that I would not win sitting in the “loser´s” chair. There was that negative energy vortex that I simply could not control.

Of course, it was all in jest and we were having a good time, but I found it interesting how easily my mind took on the belief that something outside of myself was in control. Imagine, something as ridiculous as the chair that I sat on being responsible for me winning or losing a board game! It´s crazy. Of course it is. But maybe not….

Think about it. Isn´t it true that people do this all the time? It´s the corrupt government, the bad employer, the crooked employee, the lousy tax system, the economy, the recession, the weather, God or the Devil, just to name a few things, that are responsible for the mess. We´d love to blame someone else for buying on credit, not saving enough money or the downturn in business. Most people are looking for the scapegoat because that feels so much easier than just taking responsibility.

I won the last game of Parcheese that night…even sitting in the so-called wrong chair. I love that Greg pushed those buttons for me and helped me see how easily we can be convinced that it is external forces that govern our destiny, fortune or lack thereof. I know better. I know that I am 110% responsible for creating my life, the life I say I want. Playing Parcheesi was a great reminder.