“When magic becomes scientific fact, we refer to it as medicine or astronomy.”
Anton Lavey
Light bulb moments are pretty magical if you think about it. As if from nowhere, you get a gift of an idea when you least expect it. It’s always much better than anything you could have come up with just by applying logic or reason. Additionally, they have that tendency to occur outside what we consider to be linear time -within a moment.
In Arthur C Clarke’s book Profiles of the Future, he presciently stated, “Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic.”
Now some of what you have read so far might sound like it would be more at home in a grimoire - a magical text book.
I believe that this century is one when we will really start to fully understand the true power of our mind and the ability to manifest in physical reality from thought. So what we might think of as magical and mystical at the moment will come to be accepted by even the most dogmatic of materialistic scientists. At the same time, the religious and spiritual will find a framework which is less bound to blind faith and less susceptible to misinterpretation or even delusion.
Throughout this book you will have noticed my predilection for two things - alternate meaning of words and the use of a good acronym. This chapter is no exception.
To help summarize how to invoke this particular type of magical moment, I’ve coined another acronym of MAGIC:
To make this type of magical spell work best, they need to be applied in a judicious manner both AT the right moment and WITH the right moment.
What I refer to here is the other non-temporal definition of the word moment, namely:
a) a tendency to produce motion, especially about an axis.
b) the product of a physical quantity and its directed distance from an axis.
By applying your MAGIC with the application of a relatively small amount of force and with the right lever, you can move a mountain.
Let me explain the five elements of the acronym.
This starts with the breath and learning to enjoy the benefits of a quiet mind.
The tools to invoke in this process are noticing the flavor of your thoughts and then passing them to the appropriate vestigial minds to better process them. As a result, the inner dialogue abates and you are poised to tap into the superconsciousness.
The meditation too can take any form. A reflective walk in nature or listening to soothing music. Tai Chi or yoga is fine too. The aim is just to make that inner voice be quiet for a while each day.
Mind Maps are the tool of choice. You don’t need to use any special software, paper and pencil is all you need. A stick in the sand could also be used. By free association, your whole mind is free to find connections that were obscured by the logical mind.
By using color, images and one word per branch, your mind will make better quality associations and you will better spot coincidences.
Mind Maps can contain semantics such as clockwise for forward time and anticlockwise for reflection and regression. Placing goals and the future top right and past events on the left may also be useful. Note that this doesn’t apply for all people and especially those with dyslexic or autistic tendencies who might have different neural ‘wiring’.
The key is for free flow, no rules, and for the mind to be allowed to wander. Just doing a drawing or doodle of what is on your mind and what comes to mind is often useful.
When you finish a Mind Map, stare at it with your eyes defocused for 30 to 60 seconds. Even though it is blurred, your brain and mind will absorb it and remember all its detail. It does this in a way such that the unconscious mind makes the conscious mind aware of anything connected with the Mind Map that’s important as and when it appears.
To realize your moment, you have to generate action. This means making a prototype, testing your idea and bringing it into reality and out of the superconsciousness before someone else does.
Remembering the other acronym IKIWISI - your colleagues and potential customers will only Know It When They See It when it ceases to be just in your mind’s eye.
Small steps are important here. Any adversity, fear or resistance is simply a sign that there is something you need to deal with. See it as part of your karmic journey.
This is something we haven’t discussed explicitly before but it’s the first step in magnifying your magical force by using ‘mechanical moment’.
If you approach the application of your light bulb moment with the right intent, it has the effect of amplifying it. It is almost like you are dropping a bigger pebble of thought into the pool of superconsciousness. The ripples it creates get picked up by others who get drawn to you.
When setting the right intention, you might choose not to have riches as your prime goal but perhaps something more altruistic, even if it is your own personal development. In my experience, your required financial reward still comes along but in a way that you didn’t necessarily expect.
What seems to carry the best moment is when your aim is to add value and augment the collective thought pool.
Make the 1 year and 3 year goals in the voiding karma crystallization big ones.
This is the final piece of the magical jigsaw. By working in teams, you spread knowledge, leverage the wisdom of the crowd, and you trigger light bulb moments in others. In short, your magic spreads and infects others - in a nice way of course.
When you tackle growth collectively, you are also able to void karma at a group level. This is very powerful magic indeed. To void karma in groups, just repeat the crystallization from the last chapter collectively with your team.
When you take this approach, you become a real magician and an unstoppable force. Your light bulb moments start to crystallize in front of your eyes.
In days gone by, performing even basic magic required the usage of elaborate rituals. These were often shrouded in secrecy and passed on verbally. If they were written down, often deliberate errors were introduced just in case they fell into the wrong hands.
Nowadays we have a deeper understanding and mastery of the physical world. We use devices every day like mobile phones without a second thought that would appear to be magical to someone who travelled forward in time from just a century ago. Just imagine being able to speak to anyone on the planet from a device that weighs a few hundred grams. They even have cameras nowadays so you can see people.
In anyone’s book that’s magic - unless of course you know how light gets converted into electrical signals and then digitized and compressed and multiplexed over the airwaves and down optical fibres.
In parallel with these amazing leaps forward in technology, magic is relegated to sleight of hand and other such chicanery. Note that even stage magicians perform small rituals to deflect your eyes and attention. There is no space for ‘real’ magic to happen in our modern day world.
Well that’s only if you don’t want it to or don’t want to recognize it when it happens to you or for you. Now remember there could well be a rational explanation for these occurrences and for it only to appear to be magic as we don’t fully understand it yet.
The magic referred to here is gentle stuff. We are not conjuring demons or sticking pins into voodoo dolls. This magic conjures up wondrous ideas in the form of light bulb moments followed by amazing happenstance that brings them into physical existence.
The modern day rituals to make these light bulb moments are actually pretty pragmatic and easy to carry out. The Illuminations and Crystallizations at the end of each of these chapters are all good examples - with any of the shamanic window dressings removed.
This crystallization can be applied in addition to any of the exercises. It’s intrinsic to the way we operate as humans but it’s often forgotten or overlooked in our busy world.
It’s simply this.
Firstly, when you have a light bulb moment or a stroke our good luck, remember to say “Thank you”. It doesn’t matter if it’s to another human being, your pet, your god or guardian angel, something inanimate like your desk. Just remember to give thanks.
Secondly, when you hit a milestone in the grounding of your light bulb moment, like a product launch, or a book signing, make sure you celebrate. How hard is that?
Lastly make sure you share your success story with others, perhaps as a press release, a blog or a case study.
The C of Celebration can also be the last C in the acronym of MAGIC. As for the IDEA acronym, feel free to make the MAGIC your own too by giving it your individual take for each letter. That way it works even more powerfully.
Magic exists; we just don’t yet fully understand it or recognize it.
When we understand magic, it becomes known as science.
Science is, after all, the new alchemy.
Meditation is the first key.
Association makes the new connections.
Generation takes it from the ethereal to the physical worlds.
Intention amplifies it and gives it more moment.
Collaboration spreads and shares the magic.
Celebration seals the magic and allows the loop to continue.