Seeds of True Success Growing Wealth and Well-Being Through Teamwork

SEEDS OF TRUE SUCCESS

SEEDS OF TRUE SUCCESS

Growing Wealth

and Well-Being Through Teamwork

Alix Rowland

Copyright © 2024 Alix Rowland

All rights reserved.

SEEDS OF TRUE SUCCESS

Growing Wealth and Well-Being Through Teamwork

ISBN

979-8-88926-204-6 Paperback

979-8-88926-205-3 Hardcover

979-8-88926-203-9 Ebook

To my father,

George (Robin) Briggs Rowland,

because we are all in this together.

I recently had the pleasure of reading through Seeds of True Success, written by my good friend Alix Rowland. A few months before, I needed to work on a catalog of the books I have written myself over a long life, and was startled to discover that they number well over 100.

Having spent much of my life as an internationally best-selling author, then, I have always found it somewhat difficult to read through books which cover the same sort of material that I often write about; in this case, learning to plant the subconscious seeds of entrepreneurial success by consciously assisting others in their own search for the same success.

Frankly, I often feel impatient when the presentation of this groundbreaking system is incomplete or not logically tight. I have to say though that I was very pleasantly surprised at the high quality of Ms. Rowland’s work. She conveys the essence of this innovative system for success with both excellent writing and excellent coverage of the deep ideas at its core. And she does so in an accessible, conversational style which makes the book really enjoyable to read.

I am happy to recommend this volume to anyone interested in a great new way of becoming successful; I used it myself to help build a quarter-billion dollar company in New York City, and sell it to super-investor Warren Buffett. And I can attest both to the wonderful financial rewards, and greatly increased sense of personal happiness from using the system that Ms. Rowland so expertly describes.

A must-read!

Geshe Michael Roach

Founder & CEO,

The Diamond Cutter Business Institute

"As a long-time friend and admirer of Alix Rowland, I have witnessed firsthand the transformative power of the Seed System. Our shared journey through ten years of rigorous Buddhist training has laid a solid foundation for the principles Alix so eloquently conveys in this book. My entrepreneurial success with MaibornWolff, growing it to a thriving company with 1,000 employees and $100 million in revenue, is a testament to the power of intentional kindness, generosity and purposeful seed planting.

Alix's book encapsulates the heart of these teachings, demonstrating that success and well-being are not just goals but outcomes of a holistic approach to helping others. Her insights are not merely theoretical; they are lived experiences that have profoundly impacted my professional journey and personal fulfillment. Seeds of True Success is a must-read for anyone looking to achieve not just wealth, but a deeper sense of purpose and connection in their lives."

Holger Wolff,

Co-founder and CEO of MaibornWolff

Contents

Contents

Introduction

Part 1.Start Where You Are

Chapter 1.Decide What You Want

Chapter 2.Infinite Potential, Endless Possibilities

Chapter 3.Inner Shopping: Natural Talents, Hidden Assets 

Part 2.Build Your Dream Team

Chapter 4.Create the Perfect Partner or Team

Chapter 5.The Truth behind Clear Communication

Chapter 6.Sharing Profit: More than Financial Abundance 

Chapter 7.The Safety Nest

Part 3.Discovering the Causes behind the Causes

Chapter 8.Four Steps to Success

Chapter 9.Shallow Causes, Deep Causes

Chapter 10.Opportunities Disguised as Obstacles

Chapter 11.From Dreams to Reality

Conclusion

Additional Resources

Acknowledgments

End Notes

Introduction

In 2009, I accidentally stumbled into a real estate business partnership that totally changed the course of my life. In ten years, I went from zero income and being deeply in debt to a comfortable early retirement. It would be more flattering if I could tell you I planned the whole thing and executed the plan perfectly, but that is not how it happened.

In 2007, I’d moved to Durango, Colorado, with a (soon to be ex-) husband and two very active eleven- and thirteen-year-old daughters. Durango is a small, rugged city in the southwest corner of the state. I didn’t know anyone in our new hometown but soon met Tiare Flora, who would become my exceptional business partner. Tiare was an energetic, fiery, Italian mom who cared for all who crossed her path. We were both new to town. She had just moved to Durango from nearby Telluride. 

Looking back, the first indication that we would have a very profitable relationship was how we met. We were doing volunteer work to increase opportunity, peace, and prosperity in our community. We were both strongly motivated by compassion. I later came to realize that caring for others actually created our prosperity.

The fifty-fifty real estate partnership we formed grew to achieve notable success. In fact, because of our success, some friends asked me what advice I could give them as newly licensed real estate agents. I told them joining a profit-sharing team would be a great way to go. The only problem with my advice was it wasn’t a common idea in the real estate industry where they were located. 

Tiare and I knew our commission-based profit-sharing team was unique in our small town. Spouse real estate teams were common. Couples threw their lot in together for better or worse. But we hadn’t heard of unrelated partners doing it. Talking to my newly licensed friends made me realize the partnership Tiare and I had created was unusual.

Working for commission, starting a business, or just getting up and going to work in the morning is risky. It has its ups and downs. I don’t know if the marketing I do will bring me the clients I need. Housing costs, grocery bills, transportation, and operation expenses never stop, but income can be unreliable. There isn’t always enough time or money to cover all the commitments, especially if you are self-employed. 

Real estate business happens twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week, so having a personal life can be a problem for a busy sales associate. The question becomes: Do you sacrifice your personal life for your business, or do you set your client’s needs aside to meet family commitments? We found a third way: a profit-sharing partnership. 

Sharing profit with a business partner or team is an exciting and effective way to even out the highs and lows of working life. It can reduce pressure and provide more time for you and your family.

The Seed System Solution

Most people think career achievements only come through education, talent, long hours, and maybe some luck thrown in. But we make our own luck. As we learned on our real estate team, you can create luck on demand because there exists a deeper, hidden cause for accomplishing your dreams. That hidden cause, helping others achieve success, is how we built our wealth and well-being.

Luck, both good and bad, is already made with every thought you think, each word you say, and everything you ever do. Changing your thoughts changes your luck. That is the basis of the Seed System. You can’t change what you are experiencing right now, but you can change what you will experience in the future through your actions toward others today. You reap what you sow. When I systematically started applying this idea to my business, my income and happiness quotient rose dramatically. 

Seeds are a metaphor for the mental imprints made in your own mind when you perceive yourself think, say, or do something. The seeds you plant in your mind mature and later ripen into your emotions, ideas, and experiences, which in turn plant new seeds. It’s an endless circle of cause and effect. This process is happening right now as you read these words. In this book, you will learn the details about how the mind records and projects mental imprints and how to be purposeful about planting and taking care of these seeds. Think of it as inner agriculture.

For example, if you want to have other people listen to your ideas at work, look for opportunities to listen to someone when they are speaking. Listen with full attention and acknowledge that you heard them. Taking this action consciously to plant seeds for people to listen to each other in the future is inner agriculture.

Life is a creative process. You are creating your reality every second. But don’t worry, it is fun and rewarding to learn step by step how to take control of this constantly unfolding adventure. Once mastered, you have the key to reach all your goals both at work and in your personal life. Success is holistic in the Seed System, a sense of well-being in your career, relationships, health, and purpose in your life. Transforming the default strategy of competition to one of pervasive kindness enables you to upgrade your experiences. 

Changing our habits and point of view is not easy. Creating a goal and implementing steps to achieve it can be frustrating. Whether it is a diet plan or a business plan, you may have trouble taking the action needed to create the future you want. Learning how to create the deeper causes for success by considering the needs of our future self and treating others kindly requires a totally new mindset. 

There is nothing to believe in this system. You simply consider the ideas, try them out in your life, and see if they work for you. One of the most difficult things to change is our own mind, but we know that if we keep thinking the same old way, we will keep getting the same old results. If you are looking for a new way to create a better life and a better world, the Seed System will work for you.

Helping Yourself and Helping Others

Most people have trouble planning for their future, saving money for retirement, or eating wisely today for a healthy tomorrow. Hal Hershfield, a professor of marketing, behavioral decision-making, and psychology at UCLA’s Anderson School of Management, investigates research suggesting that the future self is often thought of as another person. He points out that, in a survey of one thousand Americans, 50 percent listed themselves as their own worst enemy.¹ The problem is our connection to our future self. 

Hershfield and his team researched the brain activity of eighteen students at Stanford University. They asked the students questions about themselves, others, their future self, and future others. The research revealed that brain activity was similar when the subject thought about someone they didn’t know and themselves in the future, much different than the brain activity when they thought about themselves in the present.²

You likely feel varying levels of connection to your future self, just like you feel different levels of connection to your coworkers. The further forward we try to imagine in time, the more we become disconnected from ourselves in the future. Similarly, the further away from our daily life someone is, the less emotionally connected we tend to be and the less likely we are to consider the needs of that person. Hershfield explains, If one views the future self as a stranger, she should be no more motivated to save for her future self than to give money to a stranger.³

You can strengthen the connection to your future self by imagining what you will want in the upcoming months and years. Deciding what you will want is essential to creating the right causes to achieve it. In the Seed System, reaching your goals depends on how you treat other people. Treating others kindly not only creates the causes for your success, it increases well-being by building lasting, supportive relationships. You increase the connection to people around you and even to future generations by imagining what would make them happy.

Considering the needs of others brings them closer to you emotionally across time and space. Hershfield points out we make sacrifices for others when we feel connected to them. Parents regularly give up aspects of their lives to ensure that their children are better off now and in the future, adult children make sacrifices for their aging parents, and healthy marriages often entail the partners giving up something for the other.⁴

You will learn that the Seed System contends that helping others is never a sacrifice. By connecting giving to others with gain to our future self, we create enlightened self-interest. Helping you helps me too.

Diamond Cutter Institute Global

I used the extra time that having a fifty-fifty real estate partnership gave me to pursue my passion for using Asian wisdom for a more successful, healthier, and happier life. I had been practicing yoga and meditating since 1994 with the result of a sharper, more peaceful mind and a stronger body. Twenty years later, I had a renewed urgency to solve the problems I faced of financial stress and a lack of purpose in my life. I went to workshops, read books, and searched for more ideas that might help me navigate the challenges of business,