FREE CURRY !!!

I have been feeling very aware (guilty even?) of my Blog 'silence' of late - this usually happens when I am on 'input' mode in my life rather than on 'output'.

But I had a dream last night that I should post the following message to you this morning, so here goes:

I would like to thank Byrne for his comment on my post 'Cosmic Ordering' and for suggesting the book 'Ask and It Is Given'.

Well I sent off for it about a week ago and have been devouring it ever since; it is the most amazing book which has now made complete and absolute sense of everything I have ever read and heard about 'The Universe' in my life to date.

Essentially the book is not just about asking for what you want (nothing difficult about that, we all do it all the time), it is about being in the right 'vibrational mode' to receive the result (which is far more difficult - until you start really becoming aware of your energy and where you are blocked - and then practising change).

The bottom line is that it's all very well to make your cosmic orders but unless you are in the right place (of feeling Joy, Optimism, Abundance, Empowerment etc) you are often not in a position to receive the very things you are asking for.

The book also contains 22 exercises which I have been practising over the past week or so - and already change is starting to manifest in my life. More energy, more inspiration, more feel-good happiness - and in response, a whole plethora of new opportunities are starting to pop up in my email inbox every day !!!

An offer to star in a new ITV series, lots of new requests to speak at events, and yesterday an invitation to an all-expenses-paid private event with a small group of other high profile women about being a force for positive change in the world - which is one of my deepest life affirmations.

Wow - this is all so exciting, and it's happening really fast!!!

One of the exercises in the book is around manifesting material abundance. (Whilst I am not exactly a Church Mouse, nonetheless I do miss the time when money was flowing into my life in abundance - when Red Letter Days was at its peak and making £1million profit a year...)

The game is to create a bank account with a cheque book of your own making, into which £1000 is deposited on day 1, £2000 on day 2, £3000 on day 3 and so on for a year (by which time deposits will total £67million!). Then, anytime you want something you simply write out a cheque for it (which I then place in a special box) - the idea being that you can energetically 'spend' the money safely, knowing that there is an abundance of money coming into the account - instead of worrying about subsequent credit card bills, angry emails from your Coutts banker because you are overdrawn again (!), getting into debt and so on. You know the kind of thing!

So I opened my 'account' on Saturday, finally got round to creating my 'cheque book' yesterday - it is from the 'Bank of Abundance' (they are far more friendly than Barclays)and I have bound it in a golden cover - and this morning decided to write my first cheque. £10,000 to Pinelog for an octagonal garden studio which I can use for relaxation & meditation (Pinelog are the Bakewell based company who make the most fantastic wooden garden buildings for swimming pools etc; I have no connection with them by the way - this is not an endorsement deal! - apart from the fact that one of the friendly men in their workshop sawed a piece of board I needed cutting down free of charge for me a while ago).

Then, in a panic, having written the cheque out, I realised I might not have £10,000 in my account yet!!! (Not a good omen to go overdrawn with the Bank of Abundance in the first week of being a new customer is it? :-) But of course on Day 4 that is exactly the amount of the total deposits.

I will keep you posted as to what manifests...

But, trying to think back to the last time in my life when I was in a place of absolute joy, empowerment and abundance and what then manifested, I was asked by the publisher of my new book to find some photographs from my Red Letter Days years. And a couple of weeks ago I unearthed some fabulous pictures of a 'Mystery Experience Evening' which I arranged for my marketing team back in December 2001 to celebrate my 37th birthday.

There is a photo of everyone drinking champagne in the back of a super stretch Limo on our way to a 'bar crawl' of London - the Met Bar, the Purple Bar at Sanderson, dinner at 'Spoon' and then we finally ended up at Spearmint Rhino! (You will have to buy the book when it comes out in May to take a look at the pic...) I seem to recall that I was also in love at the time.

Very soon afterwards I was nominated for the Veuve Clicquot Businesswoman of the Year award, I won an E&Y Entrepreneur of the Year Award and as a result of all the publicity, I was approached by the BBC to star in a new business show they were filming called Dragons' Den...

You see, it's not the abundance that brings you joy, it is the joy that brings you abundance.

Yes, RLD also went into meltdown, but at the time I had also made a written (and I now realise incorrectly worded) affirmation that I wanted to 'get rid of Red Letter Days so that I have time to be with my family and to write and be creative'. Which is of course exactly what manifested, given that I am now based from home and that one of the first things to flow post RLD was a publishing deal for my first book, which I have just finished writing.

The Universe works in very immediate and direct ways! A bit like your SatNav works out the 'quickest fastest route'...

Anyway, just to end (and in accordance with my dream!) I need to offer £25 to the first person who responds to this blog which I would like them to spend on an Indian Takeaway this Friday night with my compliments!

To claim your free curry, simply be the first to post a comment in response to this message and then email me at rachel.elnaugh@rachelelnaugh.com with your address to send the money to.

Aren't dreams strange and amazing things?!?

Have a wonderful day.

Rachel

The death of the 'Alpha Female'

According to a survey by Business Link, which is featured today on the StartUps site, the person budding entrepreneurs would be most scared of pitching their business to is Dragons’ Den panellist Deborah Meaden.

The poll questioned 720 aspiring entrepreneurs, and Meaden received a fifth of all the votes. This compared to a mere 10% for Bannatyne, Jones and Paphitis.

Afsana Shukur, head of diversity and equality at Business Link London, sheds some light on the matter:

“There is no denying that Deborah's passion and direct approach has helped make her the successful business woman she is today. It’s unfortunate though, that many successful businesswomen tend to be viewed as domineering and aggressive.”

Over three years on, I am still trying to shake off my 'Dragon Bitch' persona - and I don't think I was anywhere near as hard as Deborah on the entrepreneurs who pitched in the Den.

It's a real shame that Deborah Meaden still portrays the old pinstriped 'Alpha Female' 1980's stereotype (although she did eventually soften her look for series 5) - she is after all a role model for all who watch the Show, which includes many young girls looking for someone to emulate.

But then if Deborah were any 'nicer' the BBC would have thrown her off the Show by now, as happened to Richard Farleigh and Simon Woodroffe before him.

I meet women in business at events all the time these days, and it so refreshing that the majority are feminine, sexy, supportive and collaborative - as well as being fabulously successful.

Being feminine and successful in business are no longer mutually exclusive.

Cosmic Ordering

This may sound like a strange departure from previous posts, but one of the things I am investigating this New Year is how people have utilised Cosmic Ordering to help them in their business.

Let me explain...

Lots of writers have talked about utilising the 'Power of the Universe' in achieving business success; it is a theme which runs through Napoleon Hill's Think and Grow Rich and it is also the basis of the cult DVD The Secret. Essentially it is based on the Law of Attraction - whatever you focus on most will ultimately manifest in your life.

And whenever I mention it at business events (usually only those mainly attended by women I must admit), as well as many heads nodding in the audience, ladies always come up to me afterwards with their stories of how they have used 'Cosmic Ordering' to attract new customers, the exact amount of money they needed just in the nick of time, or key contacts to help them with a problem in business through the strangest of coincidences.

I've also been told of how the Law of Attraction has worked against people through accidentally focusing on the negative - for example, the woman who hated her car and constantly told her husband she 'wanted to get rid of it' - only to have it written off in a car crash a couple of weeks later.

So my question to you is, have you experienced this phenomenon in business?

If so, please either post and let me know or email me at rachel.elnaugh@rachelelnaugh.com. I would be interested to hear your stories!

Alternatively, if you think it is a load of rubbish, I am sure you will be forthright in your views, as ever.

New Year, New Opportunity

I am currently helping a CEO develop his media/design business; as a result he's looking for a right hand man to handle business development, key client liaison and marketing. I've agreed to place this post on my Blog in case there is anyone out there who might be interested in this role?

Essentially it is a fairly senior executive position, ideal for someone who is based in the Yorkshire area (the business is based in Rotherham), but who is happy to travel to visit clients/prospective clients UK wide, especially London. Someone who is proactive, with great presentation skills and the ability to manage clients at a fairly senior level within SME size companies (£5m - £30m T/O). Experience within the design/print/marketing sectors would be really helpful.

The salary would be according to experience but is around the £30k-£40k level.

If you are interested, please email Yosef on Yosef@iamktg.com with your details/CV.

Regards


Rachel

There's no business like showbusiness...

I was interested to note that all the non-business commentators featured on the 90 minute Dragons' Den 'Christmas Special' were comedians.

The penny must have finally dropped with the BBC that what started out as a credible business show is now regarded as something of a joke.

At last the LibDems get it right...

Thank goodness the LibDems have finally seen the light and voted in a young, sexy dynamic new leader in the shape of Nick Clegg. I loved his acceptance speech - so positive and forward looking. And yes Nick you were spot on, there are so many people who are 'almost' LibDem voters (myself included - I briefly voted LibDem after the men in grey suits deposed Thatcher) that this is exactly where you need to be working.

And shame on Chris Huhne for descending into backstabbing in the contest. I suspect that's what won it for Clegg. I see it all around at the moment - people are moving away from conflict and competition - there is a new spirit of harmony and collaboration dawning.

Put our new man Nick alongside the gorgeous David Cameron and suddenly Gordon Brown is looking like an tired old windbag...

Roll on the next General Election!

Sweet FA

Forget about Fabio Capello needing to learn to speak English, how about the FA learning the basics of PR?

Yesterday's Press Conference was a farce - it left one wondering how the whole deal had been negotiated. And also, whether Fabio actually understands what job he's just taken on.

It would not have taken much for Fabio to have learned a few carefully crafted statements in English for the conference; I am amazed that the FA board allowed him to appear so unprepared.

If there are to be any further sackings at the FA it should not be of the Manager!