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Lewis HowesHow The Law Of Attraction REALLY WORKS (Achieve Anything By DOING THIS)| Rhonda Byrne & Lewis Howes
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EVERY SPOKEN WORD
80 min read · 15,753 words- 0:00 – 5:58
Welcome, Christian Science Roots, and Why Rhonda Stayed Out of the Media
- RBRhonda Byrne
The more effortless you are, the greater you manifest everything that you ever dreamt of.
- LHLewis Howes
I think you gotta have a dream.
- SPSpeaker
The School of Greatness.
- LHLewis Howes
Really? [laughs] Yeah.
- SPSpeaker
Please welcome Lewis Howes.
- LHLewis Howes
Welcome everyone back to the School of Greatness. I am very excited about our guest. Rhonda Byrne is here, and, uh, you are one of the most probably influential people in the last 15 years-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm
- LHLewis Howes
... at, at least in the USA and around the world, because the, the work you've done, The Secret, I believe the numbers that I saw, it's done 30 million copies sold. You've created a movement. You've written many other books, uh, since then.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm.
- LHLewis Howes
And you've got a new book that we were just talking about that came through you within five weeks.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah. [laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
Uh, The Greatest Secret.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
Which as I was reading this book, Rhonda, it's interesting. I grew up in a religion, uh, called Christian Science. I'm not sure if you're-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh, yes. Oh, yes. I know it very well.
- LHLewis Howes
You know this religion?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yes, yes, yes. Oh, yes.
- LHLewis Howes
It was, and it was-
- RBRhonda Byrne
I do
- LHLewis Howes
... and it was founded by a woman. I'm not sure if you're a- familiar with that.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yes. Who was the woman? Just remind me.
- LHLewis Howes
Mary Baker Eddy.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yes, absolutely. I've read so many of her books and-
- LHLewis Howes
Her, her book is called-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yes
- LHLewis Howes
... Science and Health.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yes.
- LHLewis Howes
And-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yes
- LHLewis Howes
... and as I was reading this book, it felt like I was reading a lot of the teach-
- 5:58 – 12:23
What the Law of Attraction Is and How Beliefs Shape Results
- LHLewis Howes
I'm curious for those that maybe came here for the first time. Can you share what is The Law Of Attraction, and is it possible that anyone can truly achieve what they want if they use it effectively? And w- also, part two of this question, what's the quickest way to hold you back from The Law Of Attraction?
- RBRhonda Byrne
So one of the ways that I talk about The Law Of Attraction or The Secret is, is sort of in a, in a different way from the way I used to speak about it because I'm always looking c- how can I make it even simpler? And, and I mean, basically that work talks about the power of the mind and the power of thought, um, to create our physical world and material world, and then The Greatest Secret takes that to a whole new level actually.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm-hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And so then you really get to see that, oh my gosh, it's super easy to create anything I want. Like really so easy because if we have a belief it's hard, then it's gonna be hard, you know? And so, and so it has everything to do with our mind and what we believe.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And so if we believe a thought, it will manifest. End of story. Manifest.
- LHLewis Howes
So if we believe we are-
- RBRhonda Byrne
A thought
- LHLewis Howes
... deserving of great love, then-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... we will manifest it. If we believe-
- RBRhonda Byrne
We will, totally
- LHLewis Howes
... we are gonna be poor, we're gonna stay poor.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Absolutely.
- LHLewis Howes
If we believe we don't deserve something-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm-hmm
- LHLewis Howes
... then it's not gonna come to us.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah. And you know, it's interesting because, because, uh, for all of us, you know, and, uh, uh, we've been conditioned, you know? I mean, you were very fortunate because you, you had a, a childhood where you were... mind was opened, and you were opened, and your heart was opened, and that's the biggest, biggest thing, is to open yourself to the possibility that everything isn't the way it appears to be. And so even if you can just open yourself to that possibility, just for a moment, you can pick up at all the next day. You can take it all with you the next day, that it's all real and everything that you're seeing. But if you just for a moment open to the possibility that things might not be the way that you think they are, then you have the greatest opportunity to really discover something incredible, how incredible you are. So, so with The Secret, yeah, I describe it really... And so I really simplify it and The Law Of Attraction because I would say to anybody, if you would just think about what you want, that's all you'd ever get in your life.
- LHLewis Howes
Ooh, [laughs] it's as simple as that.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Right? [laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
But a lot of people... Yeah. But a lot of people think a lot of negative things-
- RBRhonda Byrne
They do
- LHLewis Howes
... consistently. It's on a loop that just holds them-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... into this negative pattern.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm-hmm.
- LHLewis Howes
So how do we break that negative thought pattern?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Right. So, so y- I mean, the mind is like a computer program, so, and, and the fact that it's on a negative loop is because we programmed it on a negative loop. But, but you know, we could have been influenced when we were children and things like that. So, um, so i- one of the things that the mind loves is loves repetition. I mean, loves it. You know, if you really watch your thoughts, this is the same old thoughts over and over again, you know. It's just kind of dishing up the same old thing. So it loves repetition. So the way you can override a program is to put in the opposite, you know? And when you start out, you know, you feel like you're lying. You know, you'll say something like, you know, you might be really broke. Gee, I was when I was making The Secret. So, um, you, you might not have any money and you're trying to instill, you know, w- wealth and prosperity and riches, and every time you say it, you feel a contraction in your body because you know you don't have it. But, you know, truly because I did it myself, after a while, you change it. You re- you really begin to change it, and you don't quite have that contraction anymore. And then you start to see money coming in, you know, in, in different ways. Um, and, and it... and, and... or you can be given things that you were going to buy, and now you don't have to buy it, or... So you begin to see... You start to see signs of land, you know, is one of the great, one of the great new thought, thought, um, writers would say, talk about a sign of land. So you start to see sign of land. Now, that's what w- I did in The Secret. You can do gratitude. That will turn everything around. That will make you feel good. That will get you off the negative rant. But those negative thoughts are coming from beliefs held in the subconscious mind, right. That's where those-
- LHLewis Howes
Where do the beliefs stem from, for most of us?
- RBRhonda Byrne
They stem mostly from our childhood, conditioning. Yeah.
- 12:23 – 16:08
The Ego, Doubt, and Rhonda's Life Before The Secret
- LHLewis Howes
How do we get to a place of not doubting ourselves?
- RBRhonda Byrne
You can, because you need to know who you are. [laughs] You need to know who you are so that you don't doubt yourself because, because the one, the one that is doubting is the ego, the one that is doubting is the mind, and it's not who we are. So then you've got to become very aware of your thoughts. That one that is doubting, the one... The negative thoughts, they're all coming from the ego-
- LHLewis Howes
Hmm
- RBRhonda Byrne
... right? All of them. Because who you are would never have a negative thought, ever, ever. Who you are would never judge. Who you are doesn't have... Who you are is allowing and accepting. And so you... So all of those things are coming from the ego, and they are not who you are. And that voice in your head that you hear, that, that voice that's, you know, so familiar to you and seems to know an awful lot about you and sounds like you, that voice is not you.
- LHLewis Howes
[gasps]
- RBRhonda Byrne
That voice is just a program.
- LHLewis Howes
Hmm. What was the voice that was in your head consistently pre-Secret that you had to overcome, that belief then?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh. [laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
And then, and then what's been the, the program... Because I feel like every new evolution of us is gonna be some type of thing to overcome. So has there been something you've had to overcome in the last 15 years post-Secret to get to the next level?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Definitely negative thoughts. Definitely.
- LHLewis Howes
Before, before The Secret you had a lot of negative thoughts?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh, before this... Oh, heaps. I was like everybody else. [laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
[laughs]
- RBRhonda Byrne
Like everybody. I was just like, oh, I was pointing out all the things that were wrong, and somehow I was kind of brought up, and I think a lot of us are, that you're a good person if you, if you point out the things that are wrong, you know?
- LHLewis Howes
Hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
You have to speak up and say, "That's wrong." You know, "That shouldn't be happening." And, and, uh, and so I, I s- was kind of brought up with that, too, and so that's brought up with judgment, and that does not help us at all. Judgment, we need to put it in the trash.
- LHLewis Howes
[laughs] Yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Because that does, that does not belong with us, and the one who is judging is the ego. That's... It's the ego. It's judging. The one that has negative thoughts is the ego. So, so I had all of that going on. You know, I had doubt, I had uncertainty, I had feelings of unworthiness. I had ang- heaps of stress. Oh, my God. [laughs] Heaps of stress. I was, like, living-
- LHLewis Howes
This is pre Se- pre the book
- RBRhonda Byrne
... pre-Secret, yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Living on the edge, you know. I was like this with life, like white knuckles, you know?
- LHLewis Howes
[laughs]
- RBRhonda Byrne
What's gonna happen next? You know, something bad's gonna happen, and being really afraid it's... You know, something's gonna happen to somebody I love or-
- LHLewis Howes
Hmm
- RBRhonda Byrne
... so I mean, I lived my life like that, and, and I think everybody does, and it... and they just kind of keep it all squashed down, you know? And but most people live their life that way. And I mean, it... You know, in the last year, if you've been terrified, you know, in the last year, and really fearful in the last year, you know, all of that fear has been given to you as this lovely gift, you know? [laughs] When you were maybe a child, and it's like, here's a whole lot of things to be fearful about, and, uh, and then we go through fear. And I mean, it's very easy to see that there's no pandemic that is fear, a fear-based pandemic.
- LHLewis Howes
Hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Why do we know that? Because there are many people who are not afraid.
- LHLewis Howes
Hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And so if the pandemic was, you know, in the world, was actually a, a real fear, um, manifestation, then every single person on the planet would be fearful. And while there are a lot of people fearful, there are still a lot who are not.
- 16:08 – 26:57
Overcoming Lack: Rhonda's Money Practices and Debt
- LHLewis Howes
And what was the, what was the belief that you still had to overcome post-Secret? Because you, you overcame a lot to be able to create something like that, there was this incredible movement.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah. But I-
- LHLewis Howes
But then were there other negative beliefs that still held you back in life?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh, yeah. The biggest one, the biggest one was that I was abundant. That was the biggest one.
- LHLewis Howes
That was your limit-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Because-
- LHLewis Howes
... a limiting belief? Or-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah, be- that, that was the one I, I had been brought up with, we can't afford it.
- LHLewis Howes
Uh-huh.
- RBRhonda Byrne
We don't have enough. You know, and money would come into my hands, it would slip through my fingers. You know, things would break down. The universe would do all these things to get the money out of my hands. [laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
[laughs]
- RBRhonda Byrne
It would just, like, phew, take it away.
- LHLewis Howes
Take it from you, yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah, because I had this belief that I did not have an abundant amount of money, and, uh, that I was always in struggle, and that came from my parents. Bless them, you know, they were beautiful.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm-hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Um, but that, that came from them. You know, we can't afford it, and all of those things, so I was brought up with that, as many of us are. So the, the one, one that I had the biggest thing to overcome the belief, the biggest thing to overcome, was the belief in lack of money. And, and I knew I needed to overcome that for The Secret to sweep the world.
- LHLewis Howes
To be able to attract and bring you, yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah, because if I didn't overcome that, how could it possibly-
- LHLewis Howes
Why would money come to you then?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Exactly.
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
So I had to overcome it. I re-
- LHLewis Howes
How did you over- how did you overcome that?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh. I don't know.
- LHLewis Howes
I mean, how did you overcome the, the fear-
- RBRhonda Byrne
I-
- LHLewis Howes
... of lack, of the not having enough.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Hmm.
- LHLewis Howes
Never... I'm not worthy of money. How do we finally transition into abundance?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Hmm. I did that by many, many things. I tried many things. Uh, all kinds of... I was experimenting with it. So I mean, I would just walk down the street and say, "There's prosperity everywhere. I'm breathing in prosperity." I'd do all these, um, affirmations. You know, I'm breathing in prosperity with every breath I take. I am... My substance is prosperity. I am abundant. I am worthy, you know? And so I would say all these affirmations. I would have them all pinned up around the apartment that I was staying in, and so that I would see them and read them every day. So that was just one thing I did.
- 26:57 – 30:48
Timing, Breakdowns, and the Opening of the Heart
- LHLewis Howes
Do you ever wish The Secret came to you sooner in your life when you were starting your career or-
- RBRhonda Byrne
[laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
... you know, at a place where you're like, "Man, I could really use some money right now," you know, 10 or 15 years prior? Did you ever, or are you grateful that it came at the exact moment it came?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Hey, it would've been nice had it come earlier. [laughs] But, you know, just, I-
- LHLewis Howes
Do you think you would've been ready for it?
- RBRhonda Byrne
No. I think the timing of the universe is perfect on everything.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm-hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And I don't think, um... I don't, I don't know that I would've heard it. I don't know. Like I needed every single thing that took place in my life to happen, and I had a couple of really rough years before 2004, and then 2004 was a doozy. That's why it knocked me to my... knocked me to the ground. And I've looked back on all of those things, and I'm so grateful for every one of them, because I needed every one of those things to go wrong to get me to the place that I got to, and-
- LHLewis Howes
Wow
- RBRhonda Byrne
... and I'm j- I'm just so grateful. I could have, like, lived my whole life without, you know, finding anything, and I just think so bl- I'm so [laughs] blessed.
- LHLewis Howes
Isn't it interesting, a lot of people that I've interviewed, um, have gone through some type of big breakdown in their life-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... or at some stage. And isn't it interesting that it's hard for us to truly grow and find the wisdom we need to find without... when things are going good, when they're going-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm
- LHLewis Howes
... kinda bad. But it's almost like we need to have some type of breakdown in order... We need to have a near-death experience, a breakup in a relationship, or divorce-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... uh, an, an, an injury, a career loss, in order for us to s- wake up and say, "Something's not working. I need to find the answers and the-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm
- LHLewis Howes
... information to help me improve my life." Why, why do you think it's-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh, I know
- LHLewis Howes
... has to be so hard for us-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... to seek and find the truth?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah. I think it's because... And, you know, I would say to people, "You do not have to suffer," you know? Um, I mean, I write books so they [laughs] don't have to suffer. You know, I... But it just does seem to happen that way, and I th- and I think there are a few reasons why. I, I think when we, when we kind of collapse, there's a part of us that surrenders a little bit. You know, if I think back to that night when I-
- LHLewis Howes
Mm
- RBRhonda Byrne
... discovered the secret, I've played that over and over in my mind. And, uh, and definitely I was... I mean, there was n- there was not the ego that's got so many ideas and opinions. I, I've always said that night that the despair was so great inside me, that my ego jumped on a horse and rode the heck out of there. [laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
Wow.
- RBRhonda Byrne
That sort of... Because I think, I think it just collapsed, you know? And, and so there was this huge opening, and in that opening came everything. And, and so yeah, I just, I... We just, we just need to, we just need to melt. Our heart ne- our hearts need to open, and we need to get this, you know, out of the way, this knower who thinks they know everything, you know? Get this one out of the way, and our hearts open, and then, oh, my gosh, you know? It's amazing. And, and unfortunately, it can take very challenging circumstances for, for that to happen.
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- 30:48 – 35:42
Challenges After Success: Wildfires, Family, and Staying Free of Suffering
- LHLewis Howes
You, you were like a, a rocket ship, right, that went into another universe-
- RBRhonda Byrne
[laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
... with The Secret in terms of the movement that you created and the, the success and the abundance that came into your life, and the opportunities. I'm curious, did you still face any challenges even with all the acknowledgement and success and 30 million copies or however many it's sold now? Do you... Did you still face a lot of challenges personally in that last, you know, period?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah. I did. I did. Um, uh, they were kind of... They were situations that were sort of outside of what I was creating because I was creating all kinds of, you know, amazing things. But then there are people around me that I love, and they're creating, you know? And so I had, you know, a daughter who was really, really sick at one stage, and I was really afraid, fearful for her life, and so I had a whole bunch of negative thoughts that kind of took me down over that. And I went through really, really big wildfires in California, but they... By the time the wildfires came, that didn't affect me because I'd already had the second awakening. So I was just, like, cool with whatever happened. But, but between those two books, there were, there were definitely things, you know, in particular my daughter, uh, who was really struggling. So, um, so yeah, there are things, you know, that happen that are outside of what you are creating for yourself but still affect you because others are creating that.
- LHLewis Howes
Right.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And so, um-
- LHLewis Howes
So even though you had the bestselling book of the last couple decades-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm-hmm
- LHLewis Howes
... and all these opportunities, and the abundance, and you didn't have to worry about those things anymore, it still didn't mean you didn't have your own challenges to overcome.
- RBRhonda Byrne
That's right. And w- and you know what? I think, you know, as I've traveled along, we're always going to have them. Um, they, they... We're always going to have them because w- we... because everything in the universe is conspiring to send us home. And so, and the way to get us home is to have challenges so that we question things and so that we open up. And so I think we will always have challenges, but, but, big but, but you can get to a point where they don't seem like challenges at all, where they just seem like n- nothing. They don't bother you. You're not at all concerned. It's not a problem, you know? And, um, uh, and when the wildfires came, for example, uh, I evacuated, and I had a house full of, you know, beautiful things. I didn't take anything with me because if I took a whole lot of stuff with me, that would be saying to the universe, I think it's gonna burn down, right?
- LHLewis Howes
Mm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
So I wasn't gonna take anything with me, and I didn't want to anyway. Uh, and I was just fine with whatever happened. It was, if it got engulfed, then that meant that, that the universe needed to move me in a different direction, and I was totally fine with that. And I, and I would know that it's for the better and for more amazing things. So I was really fine, and all the people around me were all panicked. They're like, "Oh, it's so close, you know? It's burning houses in your street." And I was just like, honestly, I never felt a shred of fear or anything at all. I was just fine with it. And so, and so that's the way we can be. You can have challenges, and uh, and in our community there were really bad mudslides after those, uh, fires.
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah. I know.
- RBRhonda Byrne
It took-
- LHLewis Howes
People's homes were being swept away.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
It was crazy.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And took out... You know, some of my dearest friends died in that and-
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah
- RBRhonda Byrne
... lost houses and everything. And-
- LHLewis Howes
This was Santa Barbara area, right?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah, yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And so, um, but I mean, I was able to be of enormous help to the people around me because I, I d- was not down in the suffering where they were. I was feeling incredible compassion for everybody and everything that the community was going through. But I knew this community would rise up and be fine again, as they have, as they have done. But I just made sure that I made myself available to people to help them in their grief and, and things like that. And so, but you know, even that, you know, I was evacuated again for, like, another three weeks or a month. I didn't know if my house was still standing or not.
- LHLewis Howes
Right.
- RBRhonda Byrne
But, you know, it was, it was just... It was, again, it was just fine. And I know people would be like, "But how?" You know? "How can you be like that?" And there've been other things, you know, really tough things like my daughter lost a baby, and, uh, um... So all sort of things outside of my creation kind of thing, but, uh, but just didn't, didn't f- go into the suffering of those things.
- LHLewis Howes
That's good.
- RBRhonda Byrne
You know?
- LHLewis Howes
How, how do we...
- 35:42 – 42:56
Welcoming Emotions and Not Taking Anger Personally
- LHLewis Howes
How have you learned to eliminate suffering in your personal life through the, the good and the bad that comes in? Have... Do you feel like you've mastered that, where you don't suffer anymore?
- RBRhonda Byrne
I don't feel like I suffer very much, no. And, and, uh, I can't say that I, I would never again, but I can't imagine what there would be that I would.
- LHLewis Howes
Okay.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And really, the, the way that I did that was, uh, was really on the journey, which is all in, in the book, and it is, and it is a journey.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm-hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
But one of the things, and it's in The Secret, what you resist persists.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm-hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Right? And so I came to understand that if we resisted negative feelings, then, then we just push them down inside of us and suppress them, and then they would just be sparking off at every little thing, you know? If you've got anger suppressed inside of you, you can bet there's gonna be a whole lot of things in the world that are gonna trigger that anger that is pushed down inside of you. And so I, I actually intuitively worked out that if I welcomed a negative feeling, like imagined like putting my arms around it and bringing it in close to me, what was so amazing, it would intensify for like one second to two seconds, and then it would just evaporate.
- LHLewis Howes
Wow.
- RBRhonda Byrne
You know, something that we try and push them away, you know? We don't wanna feel them, but we're not pushing them away, we're pushing them down here, which then plays havoc on our body, you know? So, so one by one, as a negative feeling would arise, I would welcome it.
- LHLewis Howes
Wow.
- RBRhonda Byrne
It would dissolve, and then if it came back, it would just never be as strong like it was. It was like really weak. And so then I'd welcome it again until I don't feel it anymore. I don't think it's possible for me to get angry anymore.
- LHLewis Howes
Wow.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
So say someone, say, say, say someone you love, or a friend of yours or somebody you love-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... in a relationship is getting angry at you.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
And they, they get angry at you for little things, whether it's your fault or not your fault.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm-hmm.
- LHLewis Howes
How would you take on that situation?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah, that wouldn't bother me. Um [laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
[laughs] So, so if someone says like, "Rhonda-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Because I would like to-
- LHLewis Howes
... I, I don't like that you did this," or, "You're bad in this area"-
- RBRhonda Byrne
You know-
- LHLewis Howes
... what would you...
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... would you get defensive, or would you just say-
- RBRhonda Byrne
No, 'cause I would just look at them and see that that is not them. That's the mind and the ego talking.
- 42:56 – 47:07
Gratitude, Love, and Handling Self-Doubt and Pressure to Repeat Success
- LHLewis Howes
What is... What would you say for someone who has a pretty good life, but they doubt themselves a lot still? Like, they wanna put-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm
- LHLewis Howes
... this thing out in their world, the- their book, their artwork, they wanna say how they truly feel to the person of their dreams, whatever it is, but they doubt themselves. They have a lot of-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... self-doubt.
- RBRhonda Byrne
So there are two things that really, really work both brilliantly. One is gratitude.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm-hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
You can do so much gratitude.
- LHLewis Howes
Gosh, it's so true
- RBRhonda Byrne
... and then that will just wipe out those feelings. And the other thing is somebody who's feeling all of those things has a base of unworthiness, and so the... what will take that out is love. And, and so if you go about just p- looking through the day and looking for all of the things you love, I love that about that person. You know, I love this time of the year when this is happening.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And, you know, I love this time of the year. I love holidays. You know, even though the pandemic's happening, I still love this time of the year, and I love... Yeah, I, I love, uh, whatever it is. I love this car that I drive. I feel so blessed that I have this car. Or, I love the fact that I'm going to be getting a new car one day, you know? And, and so I love my bed, and I love... Oh, I love-
- LHLewis Howes
Mm
- RBRhonda Byrne
... my bed. [laughs] And just look at all of the things that you love, and really rampage it every day, because as you send out all of that love, it gets multiplied and will come back into you, and gone are the feelings-
- LHLewis Howes
Mm
- RBRhonda Byrne
... of unworthiness.
- LHLewis Howes
I love that.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Gone.
- LHLewis Howes
I love that.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
Uh, I, I interviewed, uh, Liz Gilbert, who's, uh-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh, yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... s- someone I, I love her energy and I love her work, and she's a, just a, a, a, a sweet woman, um, making an impact in the world. She obviously she wrote the book Eat Pray Love-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm
- LHLewis Howes
... which I think did 12 or 15 million copies. Uh, was a similar type of experience for her, where she wrote-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Right
- LHLewis Howes
... this book, and it took off into a major movie, and, you know, all these copies-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Right
- LHLewis Howes
... sold all over the world.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- 47:07 – 51:10
Why We Suffer and Guarding the Door of Thought
- LHLewis Howes
why do you think we suffer so much? You know, I've-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm-hmm
- LHLewis Howes
... I've studied a lot of meditation with different teachers in, in India-
- RBRhonda Byrne
[laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
... and, and, uh, you know, I've got my own theories, but I'm curious, why do you think we suffer as a human race so much?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Well, mostly we're ignorant of the truth, and that's causes a suffering. Um, but w- like, all, all suffering comes from the mind. You know, it doesn't come from the world. It comes from the mind. And so we, we suffer more from the thoughts by believing our own thoughts than we do from anything in the world. And, you know, the, the thoughts about 2020, way more terrifying, you know, than... The thought... The mind just conscious. Like, the mind loves a drama.
- LHLewis Howes
Loves.
- RBRhonda Byrne
You know, it, oh, it loves a drama. Like, it, it, it will just, like, it will just give you so many scary thoughts around a drama-
- LHLewis Howes
[laughs]
- RBRhonda Byrne
... and get you so worked up, you know? And, uh, but, you know, the mind unfortunately, uh, is, you know, is, is, it is just our greatest tool to create the life that we want to have. But we're in a duality, so it is equally can be our torturer.
- LHLewis Howes
Oh, man. It's, it's funny you say that because, again, growing up I was studying this book called Science and Health by a woman named Mary Baker Eddy who wrote this book, and she said, uh, "Stand porter at the door of thought." Because those who stand porter at the door of thought, they're able to admit the good and reject evil. Those are the ones who are assured of a happier, healthier, more rewarding human experience, if you can truly- Be a guard to negative evil thoughts
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... drama thoughts, stress thoughts-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... gossip thoughts, judgment thoughts.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Totally
- LHLewis Howes
And one, and one of the practices my dad did is when we were watching football on TV growing up, he would turn the commercials off. He wouldn't allow me and my siblings to watch the commercials because-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Okay
- LHLewis Howes
... most of the commercials in the US, at least growing up and today, were around pharmaceutical drugs and-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Lack of health. Lack of health
- LHLewis Howes
... yeah, you need this drug-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... to help you with this thing, and you're sick, and you're sick, and you're sick.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
And it's no wonder-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm
- LHLewis Howes
... you know, uh, I think it's two-thirds of our country in America now is either obese or overweight-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... and pre-diabetic or Type II diabetes.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- 51:10 – 59:15
Everlasting Happiness and Effortless Manifesting
- LHLewis Howes
you talk about everlasting happiness in the book.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm.
- LHLewis Howes
How do we... I mean, it seems like you found a pretty, a pretty blissful place, but that might be... a lot of people watching or listening might say, "Well, it's must be easy for Rhonda. She's, you know, a mega millionaire. She doesn't have to worry about money. She's got all this, everything going for her."
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm.
- LHLewis Howes
But as, as the world has shown, there's been many suicides this year from a lot of wealthy people who were unhappy-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... when they seemingly had it all.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
How do we, how do we start to, to find the journey of everlasting happiness?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm. I would... Because I'm a bit like, uh, um, uh, Jim Carrey-
- LHLewis Howes
Mm-hmm
- RBRhonda Byrne
... in that, uh, you know, it's... One of the really great benefits is when you do acquire all those things that, you know... I, I mean, I was born into a really, really humble family. Like, they did not have much money, and many people would have considered us poor and, uh, but, uh, you know, and then suddenly you get all of these things, and they're... Uh, it's all wonderful. You know, that's great. It's horrible being worried about money. It really is.
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
But that happiness that we think that those material things will bring, it's fleeting. You know? And, and so I agree with Jim Carrey in that, in that those, those things are never going to bring you everlasting happiness. And what will bring you everlasting happiness is to know the truth about everything, and to know the truth about who you are.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And that will bring you everlasting happiness because that will take away all of the, all of the things that everybody is worried about, like death. All of those things will be resolved. And, um, and then you just... Everything falls into place. You know?
- LHLewis Howes
Mm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
You're just like, wow. And, and the world and the manifestation of the world becomes even more incredible than it was, and when you're not fearful, you love so deeply. You know, the love that you have is so deep. And so here you are in this state of, I'm of total allowing and, you know, and I, I don't mind what happens, and you just got this undercurrent of happiness. Well, just imagine what law of attraction does with that.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
No resistance, just allowing, just... It's so amazing. I mean, it just... You just have to... You don't even have to think of [laughs] something and it just comes into your life. Like, it's so fast, and one thing that I will say for sure is I think, like I've always felt, life works in the opposite way to the way we were brought up. Potentially not you, Lewis, because you were so fortunate. Um, but for most of us, it works in the op- opposite way to what we thought, and one of the things is we've all been driven to achieve and, you know, struggle to get somewhere, and you've got to work really hard, you know, to get money. There's a belief. You know? No, you don't. You know? It's, that's not the case all of the time at all. And so we, we like struggle and pushed and effort, effort, effort, and the most extraordinary thing is this, is that the more effortless you are, the greater you manifest everything that you ever dreamt of.
- LHLewis Howes
Yes. [laughs] I love it.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Because... Right? Because when you have effort, you are saying, "I don't have this." You know? You're saying, "I don't have it," and the universe hears, "I don't have it." You know? And so, so when you're efforting, you're like, "I don't have it. I'm not worthy enough. I need to work harder. I need to really struggle." But if you were just completely effortless, everything just comes because there's no resistance stopping any of it.
- LHLewis Howes
What I... There's a lot of- I'm a big fan of this, but I also understand the principle of, uh, working hard as an athlete. I would have to wake up early-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Sure
- LHLewis Howes
... train to grow and, and-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Sure, sure
- LHLewis Howes
... learn my craft and put in, you know, years of practice. That was hard work. You know, it's-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... I gotta grow my muscles. It's not growing f- you know, effortlessly-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah, yeah
- 59:15 – 1:05:21
The World Isn't What It Appears: Awareness and Watching the Mind
- LHLewis Howes
What is the, what is the... some truth that you have now about life, about the world, and about manifesting? You've, you've gone through a journey from The Secret to The Greatest Secret, and you've had some... obviously some other big books in between, but what are the, the main truths you've discovered in this journey?
- RBRhonda Byrne
The world is not what we think it is.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
The world is different from what it appears to be, and even science, quantum physics, will tell us that, you know? Um, they... With the observer effect and, you know, nothing comes into form unless there's a mind observing it. And so, so the world is not what it appeared to be, and I always thought that it was separate, and this is a separate one here, and, you know, this one's born and dies, and, you know, and, uh, and everything, everything's, everything's separate, and time is real. [laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
Mm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And, uh, and this, you know, from here to my toes is, is who I am. Um, and they're the things that, uh, they're the things that are not true, and that, and that you have to work hard and struggle. And I had no idea of the power of the mind. You know, I had no idea of the power of the mind to manifest and the power of the mind to sabotage us, you know, to ha- to harm us. But I'm really clear about it now. And so, I mean, that's just... Those things are the greatest things that I would say for anybody, because when you see the truth, and you kind of gotta see it, you know? It's not an intellectual thing. It's like, I, I think in The Greatest Secret I talk about, you know when you see those paintings, um, where you just have to shift... You know, there's two paint-
- LHLewis Howes
The 3D.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
Yes.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Where there's two paintings in the one.
- LHLewis Howes
Yes.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Right? And, and first of all, you can see the one, you can see the one really, really clearly, and somebody says to you, "There's a woman on a horse-
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah. [laughs]
- RBRhonda Byrne
"... in that painting." Right? But you can only see, you know, the chipmunks in the corner. You can't, you can't-
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah
- RBRhonda Byrne
... see the woman on the horse. And they're like, "You've just gotta look. You've just gotta change your perspective ever so slightly, and the woman on the horse will come into view."
- LHLewis Howes
Yes.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Well, that is exactly the same-
- LHLewis Howes
You've got that-
- RBRhonda Byrne
... as it is to see the truth
- LHLewis Howes
... you've got-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Exactly
- LHLewis Howes
... you've got that approach there.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Rubens vase.
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Exactly.
- LHLewis Howes
I love that.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And so what do people see? Do they see a vase, or do they see-
- LHLewis Howes
Two, two women, right? Yeah
- RBRhonda Byrne
Right
- 1:05:21 – 1:12:39
Who Rhonda Is, Three Words, Time, and a Simple Life
- LHLewis Howes
What do you want the world... Again, there's no... I don't know any interviews I can find of you online. What do you want the world to know about who you are?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Who, who... I am consciousness.
- LHLewis Howes
Who, who... What is, what is something, uh, that you want the world to know about you? Who's Rhonda? In the world today, what... and what is the thing that you think people might misinterpret about you? Because again, there's not a lot of-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Hmm
- LHLewis Howes
... there's not a lot of content of you doing interviews online.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Well, I think there's always going to be, because it's a duality, there's always going to be the resistance to anything. And we've seen through history that when somebody comes out with big ideas, new ideas-
- LHLewis Howes
Mm-hmm, mm-hmm
- RBRhonda Byrne
... you know, let's just take Galileo, for example. [laughs] You know, big new ideas, there is in, there is pushback because it's a duality.
- LHLewis Howes
Resis-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Right?
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And so I just see that as part of it, you know. This is part of the world, and there is going to be that. And, um, and so I don't, I don't mind, and, uh, I don't, I don't really see, you know, I don't really regard Rhonda as something [laughs] as something, um, tangible. So I really wouldn't even mind what anybody thought. [laughs]
- LHLewis Howes
I love that
- RBRhonda Byrne
I, I don't mind
- LHLewis Howes
You don't mind.
- RBRhonda Byrne
I don't mind. It, um... You know, I guess if there was anything, she was dedicated to the truth.
- LHLewis Howes
Hmm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
You know? She was... Consciousness was dedicated to delivering the truth in the simplest way possible through that form.
- LHLewis Howes
Hmm. That's beautiful.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And, um... Because somehow or another, this, this particular body mind has a, has a, a, a real connection to simplicity. Loves simplicity. And so I, everything, just want everything to be simple, you know-
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah
- RBRhonda Byrne
... for people to understand it's all so simple. And a- in actual fact, you know, The Greatest Secret is simple. So simple. Three words will get you there. Actually, three words will get you to who you are. However, it's all of the beliefs and the opinions and the fixed ideas we have in our mind that then will make something very simple complicated, you know?
- LHLewis Howes
Right.
- RBRhonda Byrne
"Well, I can't do that," you know. "I'm not Buddha. I'm not Jesus Christ," you know.
- LHLewis Howes
[laughs]
- RBRhonda Byrne
"I can't, I can't do..." You know, "I'm just this," you know. And, uh, yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
What are, what are those three words?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Are you aware?
- LHLewis Howes
Are you aware? 'Cause if I'm not aware, I'm in suffering, I'm in lack, I'm in frustration, anger-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm-hmm
- 1:12:39 – 1:19:26
Three Truths, Her Teacher, and Where to Find the Book
- RBRhonda Byrne
Okay.
- LHLewis Howes
It's called the three truths. It's a hypothetical question.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Okay.
- LHLewis Howes
So I would like you to imagine that you get to live as long as you wanna live in this earth, in this body, and in this physical mind, right?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Right.
- LHLewis Howes
And, uh, but for... And you've r- achieved everything you wanna create in the world from this point on till as old as you wanna live physically. Uh, you've created it all. You've seen everything come true. You're self-realized, self-actualized. You've got more books-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm
- LHLewis Howes
... and wor- It's all happened. But for whatever reason, it's the last day. And for whatever reason in this hypothetical scenario, you've gotta take all of your body of work with you. So no one has access to The Secret. No one has access to The Greatest Secret.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh, wow.
- LHLewis Howes
No one has access to... Just imagine. It's a hypothetical.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah, yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
And, um, you've gotta take it all with you to the next place, wherever that is.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm-hmm.
- LHLewis Howes
But you get to leave behind three things that you know to be true from your entire life and your existence, and these are only three lessons that you could share with the world, and that's all they would have to remember you by are these three things.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Mm.
- LHLewis Howes
What would you say are your three truths?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Focus on what you want, not on what you don't want. Who you really are is deathless, infinite being, pure love, beauty- Those things are fine. I think I was just gonna think of a whole lot of other beautiful things that we are-
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah
- RBRhonda Byrne
... but-
- LHLewis Howes
Yeah
- RBRhonda Byrne
... um.
- LHLewis Howes
That's number two.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And there is no death.
- LHLewis Howes
Mm.
- RBRhonda Byrne
You know, a mentor of mine said to me many years ago, he said, "The greatest moment of life is the moment of death."
- LHLewis Howes
Wow.
- RBRhonda Byrne
I know.
- LHLewis Howes
That's crazy.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And I said, and I said, "Why is that?" And he said, "Because all the negativity falls away. It's all gone." All-
- LHLewis Howes
All the suffering, the negative thoughts
- 1:19:26 – 1:21:33
Acknowledgment and Defining Greatness
- LHLewis Howes
I wanna acknowledge, I wanna acknowledge you for a moment, because you are an incredible gift, and you have this-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh
- LHLewis Howes
... joyful energy, this childlike energy that continually is curious to find answers for your life. And then you're so giving in what you learn, that you create it, and you package it in a way that is beautiful, that is easy to consume in a complex idea type of world. So I wanna acknowledge you for constantly-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh, thank you
- LHLewis Howes
... showing up even when you don't have to do anything. You created The Secret. You, you, you made it in a lot of people's minds.
- RBRhonda Byrne
[laughs] Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
But you keep showing up to add value to the world, and for me, I'm really grateful that you are here-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh, thank you
- LHLewis Howes
... uh, and, and constantly showing up, so I acknowledge you for that, Rhonda.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Thank you so much, Lewis.
- LHLewis Howes
And ho- and I hope-
- RBRhonda Byrne
It's the sweetest thing. Thank you
- LHLewis Howes
... oh, of course. And I hope we can connect in the future sometime. Uh-
- RBRhonda Byrne
I do too
- LHLewis Howes
... we're both in California, so hopefully we'll-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Oh, yeah. Great
- LHLewis Howes
... get to say hi and-
- RBRhonda Byrne
Yeah
- LHLewis Howes
... uh, a- and give you a hug sometime when I can. Uh, my final question for you, and, and again, I wanna make sure g- people get the book. They follow you on social media. We'll have all this linked up. Uh, but my final question is, what's your definition of greatness?
- RBRhonda Byrne
Wow. Who we really are. [laughs] That's my definition of great- Actually, that's the only greatness there is. Wow. So I would say any greatness that we see in the world is the greatness of the infinite being that we are. I would say that absolutely categorically. There can be no other greatness than the greatness of the infinite being manifesting through all people. Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
Hm. I love this.
- RBRhonda Byrne
And I actually think everybody is filled with greatness. They just need to realize that. Yeah.
- LHLewis Howes
Rhonda Byrne, The Greatest Secret. Thank you so much for being here.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Thank you, Lewis.
- LHLewis Howes
I appreciate you very much.
- RBRhonda Byrne
Thank you. I loved it. Thank you very much.
- LHLewis Howes
If you wanna learn more about how to master your mind, check out this next video right here.
- SPSpeaker
We're all faced with great opportunities brilliantly disguised as impossible situations, and we are at that m- point, at that nexus point in our, our evolution as a species. So then you don't try to fix that. That's never gonna work. What you do
Episode duration: 1:21:33
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Transcript of episode 30molCgfe4k
