Take the 20-10 test to determine whether or not you’re living your magic life. What is the 20-10 test? The 20-10 test, courtesy of Jim Collins, author of the best selling book Good to Great, consists of two simple, yet very powerful questions:

1. If you inherited $20 million today, would you spend your days the same way you spend them now?
2. If you knew that you had only ten years left to live, would you stick with your current job or career?

As you answer these questions, you’re probably thinking, “Of course my life would change if I inherited $20 million, and if I only had ten years left on this earth, I would definitely quit my job; I would travel immediately to three or four destinations that I have always dreamed of visiting.”

With $20 million dollars you could pursue each and every imaginable interest – interests that are far from your present reality. However, you don’t need that kind of money to live your magic life.

It’s very easy to become stuck in a job, relationship, or situation that is so boring that you wonder how you got there. As difficult as it may seem to dig yourself out of such a ditch, you have the power to do it. The trick is to think of the 20-10 test and then apply the answers to your life in small doses. For example, instead of traveling to all four of your dream destinations immediately, choose one and make it your objective to visit it in the next two years. Don’t let anything get in the way of your objective. If you said that you would use your last ten years to become more active in community service, start doing so by volunteering a few hours a month to make a difference. The activities that you believe would be rewarding in your life are waiting for you – simply get rid of the imaginary barriers and pursue them. Don’t be like the American Investment Banker in pursuit of millions with the goal of eventually leading the life that the Mexican fisherman was already leading. (Click here to read the story of the Millionaire and the Fisherman).

Use your answers to the 20-10 test to start living your magic life today. It’s easier than you think!

Every January 1, millions of people make New Year’s Resolutions, hoping to alter their lives. They want to work out more, make more money, spend more time with the kids, be more romantic, stop eating sweets, stop eating red meat, write a book, write a script and the list goes on and on. The truth is that most people do not keep their New Year’s Resolutions. The easiest way not to fall into this trap is to avoid making promises you can’t keep. Consider setting one goal and sticking to it and don’t wait until the New Year. Make the goal right now. Go ahead – try it. Think of a task you’ve always wanted to complete. Write it down and start working on it.  Remember to make it realistic. That doesn’t mean you can’t set lofty goals, or goals that others think you won’t be able to accomplish. It just means you should think twice before you commit to something that just will not happen.

On January 1, 1996 I pursued the unrealistic dream of developing abs of steel in six weeks. To help me accomplish this goal, I ordered the infamous, wonder-working ab-roller. You remember the ab-roller, right? After six weeks of grueling, five-minute a day exercises, I looked in the mirror and I liked what I saw. I thought, “Wow! I can model for GQ Magazine.” But my revelry was rudely interrupted by the sound of my alarm clock waking me up to go to class. I raised my pajama top and revealed my highly-disappointing Pillsbury dough-boy like pouch. Can you believe that I fell for that nonsense? I gave the ab-roller away to someone else who believed that she could get a six-pack with five minutes a day of ab-exercises without changing her diet or performing other cardio routines. It’s just not possible. You don’t have to wait until January 1 to change your life, but you do have to make your goal realistic. Now that’s living your magic life!

There’s a Ghanaian proverb that says, “The young boy who has no money to buy a car is the one who asks for the price of gas.” We make fun of such a boy in Ghana, but he has the right idea because he is acting as if he owns a car in the hopes that one day he will. Therefore he needs to know the price of gas.

In the movie Boiler Room, Ben Affleck’s character introduced the term “act as if” to young, hungry wanna be stock brokers. By acting as if, you are playing the part of the person you want to be. If you want to be a senior executive at your company, dress and walk with the confidence of a senior executive. If you want to date Miss Lithuania, act with the confidence of someone who’s already dating her. If driving an S550 Mercedes Benz 4Matic makes you feel more confident and successful, act as if that’s the car waiting for you in the parking lot, even if you only drive a 1995 Honda Accord. Before you know it, you’ll step into your role as if you’ve always been there.

When you carry yourself a certain way, people believe that you already match the profile. I’m not suggesting that you lie about your net worth or about the car you drive. I’m merely suggesting that by acting as if you’re already there, you will get there more quickly and you will encourage people to believe in you along the way. In psychology, this process is known as neuro-linguistic programming. It is the connection between success and the thought patterns that bring about that success.

By acting as if, you are thinking and speaking success into your life. When you go for a job interview and you are discussing working at the company with your friends, say, “When I start the job, we will send Johnny to private school.” When studying for your test, say, “When I pass the test, I will have my brokers’ license.” When you ask your boss for a raise, say, “When I get my raise, I will increase my charitable contributions.” It’s not a matter of “if”, but a matter of “when”. Now, acting as if does not mean running up your credit card bill in anticipation of a higher salary or a new job. Acting as if simply means preparing yourself mentally for your new condition. So go ahead and ask for the price of gas, because you will have that car before you know it!

Once you decide what you are going to pursue, you must realize one fact – you will not be successful right away. The road to your dreams and aspirations is filled with potholes of failure. Failure is a right of passage to ultimate success. However, you should embrace the resulting lessons. Failure is a necessary investment. Failure in pursuit of a dream is not failure in life.

The executives of Decca Recording Company were not impressed during The Beatles’ first record audition. One of the executives said, “We don’t like their sound. Groups of guitars are on the way out.” Oh really?

In 1944, Emmeline Snively director of the Blue Book Modeling Agency told Norma Jean Baker, an aspiring model, “You’d better learn secretarial work or else get married.” Norma went on to become Marilyn Monroe.

In their book, Switch – How to Change Things When Change is Hard, Chip and Dan Heath recount the following story about failure. In the 1960s an IBM executive made a risky decision that ended up in a $10 million loss. Today that’s the equivalent of just over $70 million. Can you imagine losing your company that much money? That would be a great incentive to pursue your dreams, because you could probably forget about your job. The CEO, Tom Watson called the executive to his corporate headquarters office. According to journalist Paul B. Carroll, here’s what happened next:

As the executive cowered, Watson asked, “Do you know why I’ve asked you here?” The man replied, “I assume I’m here so you can fire me.” Watson looked surprised. “Fire you?” he asked. “Of course not. I just spent $10 million educating you.”

When you define your aspiration, don’t worry about whether or not you will reach the mountain top right away. No one makes it right away. A good professional makes his job look easy, but making it look easy takes hard work and many failures. Go ahead and fail. Who knows, maybe you’ll be the next Marilyn Monroe.

Aesop’s Fables are a collection of short stories designed to illustrate simple sayings. One such story is called The Hunter and the Woodman. It is a tale of a cowardly hunter who was searching for the tracks of a lion. He asked a man felling oaks in the forest if he had seen any marks of the lion’s footsteps or knew where its lair was. “I will,” said the man, “at once show you the Lion himself.” The Hunter, turning very pale and chattering with his teeth from fear, replied, “No, thank you. I did not ask that; it is his track only I am in search of, not the Lion himself.” The moral of the story: a hero is brave in deeds as well as words.

Ralph Waldo Emerson once said, “What you do speaks so loudly that I cannot hear what you say.” Motivation means acting! Have you ever listened to a group of people talking about the next big idea? These conversations frequently take place in a barbershop or at a Friday-night poker game. In these settings, friends discuss the next idea that will generate millions of dollars and create infinite happiness. Interestingly, many of these ideas are actually quite good and if executed, would probably do pretty well in the marketplace. The problem is that they end in the barbershop and at the poker table. No one bothers to take the next step. No one bothers to act. It’s all talk. Have you ever thought of an idea and then put it to bed only to see an infomercial two years later with a variation of that very idea? Yes, that’s right! YOUR IDEA! How does it feel to see someone getting rich off your idea? Maybe you like that feeling. More likely, you do not.

When an idea enters your brain, write it down. You’ll be surprised how quickly an idea will escape if you do not write it down. Many ideas may come to you while driving. I do not recommend writing while driving. Keep a little recording device in your car to record your brilliant ideas when they come to you and write them down at your first opportunity. After you’ve written down your idea, plot out the steps it will take to actually bring the idea to life – who needs to be involved? What is the investment? Is there a market for the idea? After you’ve written down your idea and the steps it would take to bring it to life, start making moves. In other words, GO FOR IT. Planning is a good and necessary step if you want something to come to fruition; ask anyone who has ever planned a wedding. However, too much planning often leads to paralysis and indecision. As my good friend Tony Soprano once said, “More is lost by indecision than by the wrong decision.” Yes, even gangsters can be philosophical. Perfection is not the goal – the goal is action! Actions speak louder than words; so stop whispering with your words and speak loudly with your actions.

If you watch David Blaine’s Street MagicDVD, you’ll see him bite a piece off a borrowed quarter and spit it back on. You’ll also see the girls that are watching him almost faint. They can’t understand how he did it. It just doesn’t make sense!

Do you believe that David Blaine can really bite into a quarter? There has to be some kind of trick to it, right? Blaine’s Street Magicspectators are mostly adults and they include celebrities like football player Deion Sanders and model Tyra Banks; they all watch in awe as he performs numerous crazy illusions. For those few moments, they suspend their disbelief and choose to see magic. It’s one thing to wonder about the secret to an illusion, but it’s another to watch a magician so closely, with the intent to catch him out and discover the secret. This only ruins the magic.

 If you apply the magic formula (act with motivation, define your aspiration, use your gifts, inspire others and act with confidence) you will live your magic life. However, did you know that there is magic in your life whether or not you apply the formula? The problem is that we often spend so much time trying to figure out the secret to life that we totally miss the magic. Think about it. How many books are there about the perfect diet; the quickest way to become rich; the way to a great realationship? How many books do we need to read about the same subjects? It’s in our nature to constantly look for the secret and this innate desire has made a lot of people very rich.

If you approach your life with the openness of magic spectators, you will see that the magic is already there. In other words, you already look good; you don’t need more money to be happy and if you put the same amount of effort into your relationship as you did in the beginning, you WILL keep the fire burning. The magic formula merely magnifies the magic that is already present in your life. Stop looking for it – it’s already there!

If you ever go to a fancy magic show performed on stage, you will see pretty, scantily clad ladies helping the magician out with his effects. That’s not a coincidence – while you have your eyes on the assistants – and don’t pretend that you don’t – the magician is performing his secret move. This technique is called misdirection and is the foundation of any good magic effect. Misdirection works in close up magic too, where magicians usually do not have pretty girls to distract their spectators. Misdirection provides one small window of opportunity to perform the secret move and if this opportunity isn’t seized, the magic is ruined. The same rules apply to living your magic life.

When you have an idea, a goal, a desire or a dream, you have one window of opportunity to go for it and that window is now. It’s not:

-          When the kids are older                                                                     

-          When you get a raise

-          When you get a new job

-          When the divorce is final

-          When you retire

Have you ever put off your dreams for any of these reasons? Did you pursue them when the situation materialized?

I used to say that I would get married at 35. By then I would have had enough time to enjoy my life. You see, people had told me that once you get married, that’s it! Well, I ended up getting married at 28, and I’ve been enjoying myself ever since. Can you imagine if I had waited because I thought 35 was the ideal age for me to tie the knot? My wife Kellie may not have hung around and I would have lost out BIG TIME!

Once you figure out your aspiration, write it down and go for it. There’s nothing holding you back.  Walk into your magic life with the boldness of the magician who performs his secret move in the open while saying, “Look at my assistant – she’s pretty, isn’t she?” That’s the magic of life.

After seventeen months in my first job out of college, I woke up one morning, got dressed, looked in the mirror and said, “What the heck are you doing, Nana!?” Why do you think I asked myself that question? Because I could have thought of four hundred and thirty nine places I would have rather gone to that day. Do you know what I spent the majority of my work day doing? Clock-watching! That’s the game where, at 9:45, you say to yourself, “I won’t look at the clock again until I’m sure it’s almost noon.” When you decide to look, it’s only 9:53. Don’t get me wrong – my job wasn’t bad, but it wasn’t lighting any fires. The worst part is that the day I looked in the mirror and questioned myself was a Friday, not a Monday. If you question your job during what’s supposed to be a TGIF (Thank God It’s Friday) moment, it’s time to move on.

Have you ever asked yourself what the heck you’re doing? Have you continued in that job or situation for another five or ten years? Why? Have you ever listened to someone complain about something for ten years – EVERY DAY THE SAME COMPLAINT? Coincidentally, I worked with someone at that same job who complained about his wife of more than twenty years every single day. He made her sound like the Wicked Witch of the West, but he went home to her every night. How sad. Who knows – maybe he was the problem.

Motivational speaker, Simon T. Bailey says that the biggest tragedy in life is not death – the biggest tragedy in life is to be alive and not know why. So let me ask you – why are you alive? To know why you are alive is to know what you were uniquely designed to do in this world. In the language of the magic formula, it’s defining your aspiration. There’s no motivation without aspiration. If you find yourself looking in the mirror and asking “What the heck am I doing?” you are not living your magic life. The beauty is that you have the power to take action with three simple steps: define your aspiration, pursue it with relentless motivation and submit your resignation. That’s living your magic life.

In August 1996, one of my mentors looked at my freshman-year transcript and said, “Nana, you’re wasting your time. I thought you were an ‘A’ student. With these grades, no one will ever take you seriously.” Wow! How would you feel if someone told you that you were wasting your time? I felt down and low for about a month as her words echoed in my mind. If I were to see her again now, I would simply say, “Marilyn – thank you very much! Your words inspired me to be who I am today.”

Let both the people that encourage and discourage you inspire you. In college, my grades were average. When I graduated from college, my jobs were just like my grades – average. However, my average grades and average jobs got me into a top business school. Why? Because both the people that said I could do it and those that said I could not, inspired and encouraged me to push toward my goal. One of my colleagues at my second job after college refused to apply to a top business school. She said, “Nana; do you know what types of grades you need to get into one of those schools? What’s the point?” To that comment, one of my close friends said, “Nana, don’t listen to her. I got into Columbia with a 2.4 GPA from Rutgers. Just apply! The worst that can happen is that they’ll say no…and you’ll be out the one hundred eighty dollar application fee, but who cares?”

You never have anything to lose by asking, but you always have something to gain if the answer is, “Yes!” When you apply the ‘A’ of the magic formula and define your Aspirations, go all the way. Don’t think your GPA will put you in the running? Go for it – what’s the worst thing that can happen to you? Don’t think your boss will give you a raise? Ask – what’s the worst thing that can happen to you? Don’t think that she’ll go out with you because of your average GPA or average salary? Ask her out – and if she says no, ask her friend.

The worst thing that can happen to you when you ask is that the person will say no. However, the magic shows up in your life when you realize that the more important question is, “What’s the BEST thing that can happen to you?” The best thing that can happen to you is that the doors and windows to your magic life will open wider than your eyes can imagine. Always ask! If you don’t, the answer is automatically, “NO!” If you ask, you never know. That’s the magic of life.

Have you ever said, “I’m just playing the hand I was dealt?” That usually means you are dealing with a negative situation and are not making an effort to do things differently. It could be a job in which you never meet expectations, a sports team on which you are not valued, a stale marriage – you name it.

In magic, there’s an effect called “Two Card Monte.” The spectator is given two Queens and with the wave of the magician’s hand, the Queens magically transform into Aces. You can imagine that magicians are not very popular at poker tables because of their ability to perform card switches and other sleights.

In real life, when you receive two Queens, you cannot magically transform them into Aces, but you can play a different game with them. Play the game in which the Queens are the most valuable cards. Changing the game means using your abilities, strengths, talents and gifts where they are most useful – where you can make the most difference. If you weigh 120 pounds, are fragile and slow on your feet, you probably aren’t fit for a career in professional football, so why bother pursuing such a career? If you never meet expectations in your job despite giving it your one hundred percent, it’s time to look for another job. If your marriage is stale – no, don’t look for another spouse; change the activities of your daily married life. Get a baby sitter once a month and have a date night, or try going away for a weekend for no reason at all – you don’t have to wait for a special occasion to be romantic.

To live your magic life, you must play the game in which the cards you have been dealt are the most valuable. Every card can be an Ace. You just have to play the right game.