Being in Love: Your Astonishing Superpower to True Success

(Part 1 of a 6 part series)

This story and subject is near and dear to my heart… I hope it encourages you to open your heart, even if just a crack, to experiencing more love and see what happens!

Whenever I speak about Love in Business, I find I have to do a lot of clarification before my audience breathes the proverbial, Ah, I get it! sigh of relief. So, bear with me, if you will.

First, being in love, is like romantic love but without all the anxiety of wondering if your affections will be returned or will last. No, this kind of being in love is a feeling of being so well cared for, attended to, accepted, and appreciated… just as you are.

It’s a state of certainty about who you are, why you are here and what you have to offer the world at large, your community, and marketplace. It’s a state where fear takes flight, new ideas emerge, vibration is raised, productivity is at an all time high and joy is your strength.

It is the place of abundance, purpose, and power.

Imagine bringing into your day and taking with you into your meetings, client calls, or sales the feeling of such security and joy that you can detach from the outcomes you desire, while still having the peace of knowing how ever it turns out, it all will be just perfect.

I first learned the power of being in love when I was a young prosecuting attorney.

My career began with a grueling and completely humiliating interview. After my soon-to-be boss lit my resume on fire to demonstrate what he thought of it, he concluded the interview with, “Against my better judgment, I will hire you. But you are going to have to work twice as hard, twice as long, and twice as much as any guy, honey, and if you don’t like it, there’s the door.”

I agreed; I was thrilled to even be allowed to be on the playing field.

Obviously, there were no discrimination laws in place, or if there were, neither of us acknowledged them.

I soon discovered that I was only the second woman hired by the state as a prosecutor, which made my boss’s hesitation more understandable, I reasoned. Indeed, this position provided more perks, power, and privilege than I’d ever had or could imagine. How could I complain?

As thrilled as I was, the pressure to prove myself and gain acceptance in the courts, as well as the incredible responsibility in my hands and not knowing who to trust, eventually turned my excitement into relentless stress, loneliness, and constant striving, leading to a depressing drug and alcohol problem.

One morning, after a night of intoxication, barely remembering the parking garage pillar I clipped with my car, or where I even parked it, I knew something had to change. Motivated, but clueless, the last thing I thought the answer could be was Divine Love.

It was Thanksgiving, and in my state of despair I visited a sister, one of those holy roller types. I loved her, but not her religion. I was an atheist, and happy to be so despite the fact that my life was in ruins. Seeing my unshakeable depression, she begged me to go to church with her.

Beyond exhausted, I agreed.

I don’t want to make this about religion, by any means, but I have to say that my life and how I experienced love was transformed forever in that church.

You know, not much is needed for Love to enter our hearts. But there has to be a crack in the wall somewhere, and having run out of my own smarts, my crack must have been sufficient.

Driving up to an office building, I wondered where this church was. Led by my brother-in-law, I reluctantly climbed the stairs to what turned out to be the meeting room. I was surprised at th casual atmosphere and lack of religious icons. No pews or stained glass windows, but all white walls, with a bright light streaming through the windows warming the air on this cold November day.

The crack in my wall was widening. As people sang from their hearts, without any hymnals, I had this strange sense that angels were present in glorious array.

For the first time in years, this marvelous child-like wonder came over me. As the pastor spoke about all that we trust in: education (check), power and prestige (double check), and money (triple check) he then had us take out a coin and read it aloud. “In God We Trust.”

As I uttered the last word, an electrical storm combined with a hurricane and rushing wind immediately invaded my every cell, but with no accompanying fear, just unspeakable joy -- this intense feeling of fullness, security, and unimaginable acceptance. Like a treasure unlocked, love and light radiated from within me, and in a moment, I knew it was God. I was completely smitten. It seemed that every trace of skeptical cynicism that I had acquired throughout the years was totally and completely gone.

Trying to keep the experience to myself so no one would pounce on me, I drove back to my home, normally 6 hours away, stopping every time I felt the compulsion to laugh and cry simultaneously. This was an exhilaration I had never known before and even my most responsible self found curbing it incomprehensible.

Returning to work the next day, I couldn’t hide what had happened, nor did I try. Everyone noticed, and regardless of whether it had to do with God or not, they were all grateful for the shift. Had my depression affected that many people?

I rode that wave for months, no longer caring if I had a romantic partner or not (which I didn’t), if people approved of me or didn’t, if I won a case or was the laughing stock of the legal community. Love made me feel impenetrable.

I’ll never forget the day I was scheduled to try a felony involving 2 female repeat offenders who were represented by their female public defenders. The local newspaper called it a The Catfight in the Courtroom, something that was not to be missed. On the day of the trial, our normally empty courtroom was bursting with voyeurs. It wouldn’t surprise me if bets had been taken.

Well, I hope the bet was on me, because in the state of my new-found confidence and joy, I was unflappable, and won the case with ease.

This victory, along with other incidences of increased performance, caused the judges and my boss to take extra notice, to the point where he decided to put me on the fast track to judgeship.

Amazingly to me, being in a state of love resulted in a higher level of performance and promotion.

But Love did something else for me. It gave me clarity that this job was not for me. It also gave me the courage to say no to this fast track, give up the power and prestige, and go for a dream career in finance and investments.

Divine Love is available to us all. But for many reasons, it seems inappropriate to talk about it in the marketplace.

Well, I submit to you there is no better place for it to be, and indeed the world needs it now more than ever.

Love,

Maryann

P.S If you feel stuck in whatever your dreams and goals are, especially in breaking the ceiling of financial restraint, my forte is pinpointing the exact thing that is in your way and releasing its hold on you.