MANDYLAND Won The 5K PKG Because Of You! Woohoo!

After 2 long weeks of daily voting in the WE Mastermind 5K Dream Business Start Up Contest I am so thrilled to announce that MANDYLAND came in top spot! WOOHOO! Things finally came to an end Monday at midnight after an insane competition, especially in the final hours. I was head to head with a fellow competitor (J-Flo) for the full two weeks and things only got more crazy after 11pm on the final night. At one point I was down by 11, then up by 6, then tied and down again. It was excruciating to watch for me and my supporters but when the clock struck 12, me and my crew squealed with delight because I had won by a mere 3 votes. Crazy!!


Since this victory would not have been possible without the efforts of so many, I want to take an opportunity to thank everyone who contributed over the past 2 weeks with daily voting, sharing the link on their page, putting up with my incessant reminders to vote, and being there in the final hour to take MANDYLAND to the top. You all were so amazing!

I would also like to thank a few people/groups individually because I especially could not have succeeded without them. Please keep in mind that it would be impossible for me to name everyone who made a difference in this contest because there were hundreds of you. I was surrounded by countless angels throughout the entire process, all of which impacted the success of this contest, so please do not feel slighted if you are not named here. You were just as integral as anyone else. xo

Without further adieu, an extra special shout out goes to...


WE MASTERMIND & CONTEST ENTRANTS

The benefit of entering the Women Entrepreneurs Mastermind contest was that I was forced to get clear on my mission an get serious about taking my work to the next level. The launch of WE Mastermind was the inspiration and motivation I needed to crystalize my vision, articulate what I am here to offer this world, present my work as a unified whole, and harness the immense support around me by encouraging my friends, fans, family and followers to participate in the 5K Contest. There was finally a push to think even BIGGER and put myself out there in a more visible way. MANDYLAND was conceived through Facebook, spilled over into blogs, and now I am ready to take it beyond these things.

I would also like to congratulate every woman who entered this contest for having the courage to follow her dreams and passion. Most people don't possess this gift and keep their ambitions hidden from themselves and the world. Therefore, each of us who submitted our work and ideas through this very public form are, in my opinion at least, great examples of daring to go for it. Yay us!

Lastly, I would like to share that although I am grateful and very honoured to have won this contest, I am acutely aware that the number of votes hardly reflected whose business idea was the best or who was most deserving of the 5K start up package. It simply showed who was most effective at recruiting online support. Not everyone who entered had the resources available to them to generate the votes needed to win, which is why I think a contest based solely on votes isn't really that fair. Janet (J-Flo) and I had the advantage because we both have an established online presence which made it much easier for us to spread the word and collect votes. That being said, I do feel that my work is deserving of the support I received through the contest and the support I will receive through the 5K start up package, but I did just want to acknowledge that those who had less votes were no less deserving.


FACEBOOK

Even though I periodically curse and remove myself from this social network, I do appreciate the good that can happen through it. My pages and my personal account are valuable tools that help me connect with like-minded individuals, share my work, make people laugh, inspire change and receive support when I am in need. This FB contest served to bring people together for a collective mission which actually deepened my trust and faith in humanity. Yes it's only FB but because of it I have more support than I ever dreamed possible.


MANDYLAND SUPPORTERS

This includes my friends, family, fans, followers and every single person who reads, watches or listens to my work, is part of any or all of my pages, who likes me, loves me or is inspired by me, and those who are appreciative of who I am and what I do. It is because of you all that I feel confident enough to write the things I write, say the things I say, and go for the things I want. Your feedback makes me stronger, lets me know I am on the right track, and picks me up when I am down. I feel so incredibly supported by you in a way that I certainly didn't experience growing up, and it makes me feel like I can do anything in the world! So thank you. I may not have met most of you in person but I feel deeply connected to you through cyber space and I want you to know that you impact my day as much as I impact yours.


AMBER LONG

I know she would rather remain anonymous for her contribution because she's just that kind of awesome, but I really want to thank my dear friend Amber for the MANDYLAND PROMO VIDEO she recorded at my place right before the contest started. It was entirely her idea and she made it happen just because she believed in me and the work that I do. I had so much fun under her direction and the result was incredible. Everyone loved how fun it was and I especially loved that she used a song by Lykke Li in it knowing that LL is my very favourite artist EVER! Thank you, my love


FLEDGLING ARTS COLLECTIVE (UK)

I have a very soft spot in my heart for Fledgling Arts Collective in the UK because its ethos is one that resonates with my soul. Founded by the lovely Jewels Johnson, FAC provides a platform both online and offline for those with mental health problems, addictions, or those who feel like they don't quite 'fit', to express themselves through art as catharsis. It is one of the most inclusive, loving and supportive online environments I have ever witnessed and the support of its members is a major reason why MANDYLAND made it to top spot. Through its FB page of almost 3000 members, Jewels led her fellow fledglings daily to vote for a woman they never met but whose mission they believed in. They rallied together in ways I never expected and I was completely amazed each day. I was welcomed, supported, encouraged and cared for. I soon realized that this contest was as important to them as it was to me (like wow!) and it was such a gift to have all these creative and generous beings by my side. Of course there are too many to name, but thank you to each of you for all that you did to make this happen. BIG thanks to Jewels especially for leading us all to victory through nothing but love. xo www.fledglingarts.org


DAILY VOTERS

You set the foundation for this contest. Whoever you are, thank you so much. 2 weeks was too long so I sincerely appreciate your daily commitment to something that had very little to do with you. Thank you for caring, for your efforts, for being moved enough by what I do to take time out of your day to contribute to the numbers.


LAST MINUTE VOTERS AKA MIRACLE WORKERS

For those who watched the contest in the final hour you will know exactly what I'm talking about. People moved cyber mountains to get me the votes I needed to win each time I posted an update on the score. People who never thought they'd vote, those who were anti-apps, and even those who had been annoyed with me for the duration of the contest, were scrambling to get their votes in and were posting the link on their walls and their friends wall just to recruit more support. One friend begged her ex to help and he actually voted AND posted the link on his wall knowing nothing about me but trusting that it must be important if she's contacting him about it.

I had another woman who couldn't access the link through her phone so she sent me her email and password so that I could vote on her behalf. This was a woman I had only ever met once. Can you believe it!?! People whom I never even thought followed my work were messaging me telling me that they just voted and got their friends to vote. I was in awe over the activity that surrounded me and when we made it to the top by midnight I know I wasn't the only one who felt absolutely amazing! We all won this together. It really was a community effort and I still can't believe all the miracles that took place in the final hours that led to our victory. Thank you everyone. You are each a part of my success.


MY ELECTION PARTY AKA THOSE WHO CAME TO MY PLACE TO WATCH THE COUNTDOWN AND SUFFER RIGHT ALONG WITH ME

Jolene, Steve, Kirsandra, Christen and Irwin, thank you so much for coming to my last minute CAKE PARTY and being there for the last half hour of torture and the moment of OMFG!!! WE DID IT!!!! It was soooooo intense in my kitchen as we went minute to minute posting numbers on updates and counting down to midnight. None of us were at ease. We are all wound up tight and I was shaking near the end as it all came to a close. When we realized that MANDYLAND was the winner, holy shit. I screamed SOOO loud and smiled SOOO big and clapped and jigged and hugged my friends and then kicked them out immediately (and temporarily) so that I could concentrate on writing an update for everyone who had been following along the whole time.

Nothing could replace the high of sharing the news with those who wanted to see me winning and of those who had participated just moments before and make this possible. How amazing is that to know that your vote was THAT important! It was. Thank you so much everyone. And thank you to Melissa who came by after 7 hrs of partying to celebrate with me after everyone had left. Needless to say, I partied hard and was useless all of Tuesday. Rock on.

Thank you EVERYONE for an intense but incredible experience that I will never forget. What a trip it was. ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!!

With immense love and gratitude,

Mandy
xo

WOOHOO!!!!

P.S.

MANDYLAND IS...

For those who voted for me and have no idea why (lol), here is a glimpse of what MANDYLAND is comprised of so that you know what your votes were supporting. This is just a brief overview but you can check out the full story here: www.mandylandrocks.com

1. GODS & DIVAS (Personal Transformation Classes)

2. SEXPOT STUDIO (Personal Transformation Videos)

3. HUMANITY PHOTOGRAPHY (You will LOVE it!)

4. MANDYLAND RADIO ON ITUNES (Talk radio that inspires, entertains and educates)

5. MANDYLAND COLUMN IN ECHO WEEKLY (Promotion for independent businesses, creative geniuses and other forms of awesome)

6. MANDYLAND MUSINGS (Writings From The Heart)

7. MANDYLAND AWESOME AWARDS (If you're awesome, you win!)

8. THE POET & THE BUTTERFLY (A Non-Fiction Soul Story)

9. HER HAPPY HIGHNESS (My Blog)

10. MODELLING (My Portfolio)

Go to www.mandylandrocks.com to connect with Mandyland Rocks on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, iTunes and Tumblr.


P.P.S. I won 5K in services not cash so stop asking me for money!!! LOL!!

The Biggest Block To Abundance: You!

When it comes to abundance (or lack thereof) in your life, it is good to remember that you are completely in charge of its flow (or lack thereof). It is also good to understand how you might be preventing yourself from experiencing the things you truly desire because you are the only thing coming between your dream and your realization of it. It's true.

Blaming external circumstances and other people for all the ways you are limiting yourself is missing the mark. They have nothing to do with your ability to create the things you most want and they are merely a reflection of where you're at in this moment. Once you make an inner shift and go for more of what you want, the things and people that drive you nutty will either change as well to match the new you, or they will completely drop out of your life. Fancy that:)

Now let's get to work. Want to know if you're in line with your desires? Here's a test: If you don't have the things you want, you're not in line with receiving them. It's really that simple. The solution: align yourself with the things you want by feeling the way you will feel when you have them. Easy peasy lemon squeezy. And when you do that consistently enough, the things you desire cannot help but flow directly to you.

If your thoughts are not abundant and loving and you feel broke and miserable all the time, well then you will experience more instances in your life to support your poverty-driven thoughts and feelings. If you switch them up however to a higher vibration that is more in line with what you actually want to experience (wealth, peace, harmonious relationships), you are then in a position to receive what you are now in line with.

You need to FEEL abundant, wealthy, in love, famous, healthy, fit etc BEFORE the money, the lover, the health, the paparazzi and your tight new body gets here. Stop thinking poor, fat, unworthy thoughts if you truly want to experience the opposite. Walk around as if. Talk as if. Live as if. Feel as if, and the universe cannot help but meet you where you are and adorn you with the people, places and things that will ultimately take you to where you now choose to go.

If you're like most people, you have been practicing limited and negative thinking and feeling for long enough. To hell with it! Practice something new. Believe you can get there form here. You can! Bazillions of people have been doing it forfreakingever and they have nothing that you don't except the desire and the belief that their dreams are possible.

You can do this, hottie. You've been doing it all your life. Everything in your world is proof of your ability to manifest. Everything. So what have you been manifesting? Bad relationships? Financial troubles? Unemployment? Poor health? If so, so what! It's a new moment and you can start to change your script right now. You can think new thoughts. You can do new things. You can be grateful for all that has brought you to this point and just lovingly release it to make way for your brand new kickass experience.

You can have it all. If you don't believe that, you're right. So believe you can and get ready to ride the universal wave to the life you know you want. The life you dream about. The life you're creating at this very moment by feeling what it's like to live it in all its glory.

Ignore the bank account, the scale, the lonely Saturday nights, the discouraging words of others and prepare yourself for the life you deserve. If you don't believe you are worthy of all that is good well then there's the issue right there. That is what you need to heal if you want it all because not feeling good enough assures that what you want will always remain beyond your reach.

If you know it's yours and you know you deserve it just as much as anyone else, regardless of what is going on around you, well honey you best prepare for your windfall because you are exactly where you need to be to receive it.

BOOM!

With love,

Mandy
xo


www.mandylandrocks.com

Kill Me Now

So as many of you know, I am currently entered in the WE Mastermind 5K Contest hoping to take MANDYLAND to the next level. It is Day 10 of voting with 5 more days to go, and quite frankly, it drives me nuts. After checking the numbers last night, I decided that I am no longer going to do so for the duration of the contest. Of course I will see how many votes I have when I cast my own vote each day, but I won't be checking beyond that and I am done checking my competitor's votes as well. Peace of mind matters more than keeping score so I will just remain focused on the things I actually do have control over. Things like my own happiness, asking for people to vote daily, and continuing my soul's work while the contest does its thing.

Whether someone votes or not, or whether I win or not, is completely out of my hands. My only job in any aspect of life is to show up as fully as possible each day with the goal of staying centered in my truth. The universe does the rest. I have watched as others get aggressive with certain goals over the years but it is not something I wish to emulate at all. Been there, done that, and all it ever created was stress along the way. I'd much rather be in the flow of life and lack of resistance is the only way to achieve that.

When I entered this contest my goal was not to win but to enter this contest. I believed my work was worthy of greater exposure and additional support. And each day my goal is to remind people to vote (if they are so inclined) with as much excitement as I can muster for the cause. I keep them updated on where I'm at in the contest and then it's up to them. I let the rest go.

If my goal is to win, then I will be upset or disappointed if I don't, and this is why I like to stay centered in who I am despite the externals. I try my best not to get too caught up in, or overly attached to, the things that come and go. I prefer to delight in the formless and operate from there. It's much more fun and light and lovely. And it's a much more powerful stance than to allow external conditions to define or validate you. I'd rather define and validate myself.

My well being was not dependent on winning the Literary Award I was nominated for in June. A nomination is great, but an award is always based on certain criteria which can hardly reflect everything adequately. It's a snapshot of a person's body of work in most cases, which is pretty limited. It also means there are winners and losers, which I never enjoy, but that's just how the masses have set things up. And so what. There are other options. Like the Mandyland Awesome Award where everyone wins no matter what. That's my kind of award. Who are we to deem someone worthy or not based on some arbitrary collection of information?

But alas, everyone loves winning. It makes them feel good. And worthy. And special. And validated. And appreciated. Yet when you already feel these things, you hardly need an award to do the job. The award is just a bonus. A nice recognition but nowhere near a reflection of all that you are capable of.

So this awareness is part of my internal dilemma each day as I ask people to vote for me in this contest. Yes I would love the opportunity to take my work to the next level, hence my reason for entering and my reason for posting about it a few times a day, but I certainly don't want to sell my soul in the process (and I do fear I'll be going to hell for inflicting this daily torture on the masses). Winning this contest (or anything for that matter) is not the be-all and end-all to my life or my career. I am going exactly where I am meant to go with or without the 5K business package. This is simply one experience along my path to greater abundance.

My winning this contest or not is based only on the number of votes and it really can't get anymore basic or superficial than that. The set up lacks depth and substance which is my biggest discomfort, and the only way I have found to alleviate that is to have fun along the way, engage my supporters in a light manner, and be grateful for the incredible level of support people have shown me through this process.

For someone with an aversion to politics on the whole, I sure have picked an interesting thing to get involved in because this contest mirrors a small scale election of sorts. You rally and get people tuned into your mission with the hopes that they will vote for you so that you can take that mission and apply it in a much bigger way. Seems fair enough, right? The guy with the most votes wins. I get it. I just don't agree with it.

Without going into too much detail about my personal views on politics (this quote by George E. MacDonald will give you a clue as to how I feel about it: "It is not in the nature of politics that the best men should be elected. The best men do not want to govern their fellowmen."), I will just say this: numbers do not count for much. At least not in Mandyland.

The things that are of real value cannot be measured except by the level of peace one feels in life, the depth and quality of connection one feels both with oneself and others, and the ability to touch and improve the lives of others. As if there is a scale to measure these things. There isn't, but these are my indicators for how well I'm doing in life, which includes my conduct in this contest.

Now that I am in the top two with another female, this contest has simply become about the numbers each day and our ability to keep them up and above the other. In the end (which is Monday, and it can't come soon enough!) our success depends more on our ability to convince people to vote for us than it does about the quality of the submission and mission, which kinda blows. Our fate is tied to something completely arbitrary, and not at all reflective of what we are capable of doing beyond recruiting people to our mission.

If I had less of a presence on Facebook I would have had no shot in hell in this contest I'm sure, yet my submission would have been the same. It just would have fallen behind the ones with greater marketing abilities. Welcome to the modern world where those with the most buzz win.

I'd like to think that MANDYLAND has risen to the top because of the relationship between me and my fans, followers, friends and family, that has been developing over a period of years and that I am being supported (hopefully) because these people value my work, trust my vision and want to see me do well and more.

Blind loyalty isn't what I'm after because that's no different than blindly following politicians and religion, both of which I abhor. Anyone who knows me and what I'm about will know how much I value and encourage the ability to think critically. So if you're voting for me without really knowing why, then thanks for the support but you're missing the point. Team MANDYLAND is about truth, independent thought, accountability, fun, authenticity, inner power, beautiful breasts and the courage to be yourself. If you value these things as well, that's awesome. Cast your vote!

If not, it's ok. You're entitled. If you're not into me or what I offer, that's fine too. Go to where you're drawn and do what you need to do. We are all free to follow our hearts wherever they may lead. Your joy awaits. And mine is already here:)

With love,

Mandy
xo

The Boys of Mandyland

Well this should be a fun post! Tonight I was contemplating the various experiences (dating and otherwise) that I have had with men over the past number of years and overall it made me giggle. Sometimes it's nice to reflect and see how far you've come from the person you used to be, and to realize that the people or things you were once so drawn to, would never even show up on your radar anymore because of how much you've changed and grown.

Every experience (romantic or otherwise) shapes us, forces us to grow, takes us in a new direction and becomes part of our life story regardless of how small the impact. We are never the same after a 'failed' relationship, heart break, a wild night of lovemaking, sex with the one we love, the first "I love you", the first kiss, or the one who got away. We all have our own sacred stories, many of which most others are not privy to.

Matters of the heart are often complicated and confusing and leave us bitching to our friends or reading "He's Just Not That Into You" once again in an effort to appease our frustrated spirit and figure out what the hell went wrong. That is of course until we come across that one person who finally fits, if you believe in that kinda thing, and I do, most definitely, even though he has yet to come.

As for the title of the post, I am using the term boy with a hint of humour but also to state something that I have come to understand over the past while: I have yet to meet (well date) a man. Meaning, a gentleman who has the ability to rise up in order to meet me where I am. The boys of the past (and I use that term lightly), although lovely in many respects, were, as Toni Braxton states, "not man enough for me". Clearly we weren't a fit or we'd be together, plain and simple, but when my heart was tied into these gents it was actually complicated as hell.

I loathe to count the minutes, hours, days, months and years I have spent in twisted dynamics leading to nowhere because I couldn't seem to pull myself out of the tangled web of love, lust, stupidity and/or addiction to a particular beau. I know we have all been there to some degree, but holy shit. With all that energy I directed towards writing about, talking about, obsessing about this guy or that, I could have earned myself another degree, maybe written another book or two, or at the very least, spent those weekends NOT in tears.

Thankfully, here I am now free of such drama. I am tied to no one (energetically or emotionally) in a way that drains me of vital life force, clarity, sanity or well-being. I am in the clear for now and can only hope that this will continue for years to come as I become increasingly more apt at getting the hell outta dodge upon discovering when something just isn't right and acting accordingly.

I feel more centered and clear than I have ever felt in my life, and I am so grateful to be in a place where the things that once caused me the most grief have finally, through much time and healing, made their way into the past once and for all. No longer at the forefront of my experience, I am now more free than ever to welcome a new kind of love into my life and damn skippy I'm excited!

My current state is one of relaxed anticipation. I am open to love but certainly not desperate for it. Ready for what's to come but not attached to how it does because my heart will know when and if it's right.

I love not knowing when or how my next great love affair will unfold, trusting completely that I will meet the perfect person at the perfect time and in the most perfect way possible. And by perfect person I mean my imperfect king who is perfectly suited to me. Can I get a hell yeah?! After a few years of riding an emotional roller coaster from hell, I am more than happy to begin a new chapter free of those past experiences.

As for the boys who helped get me to this point, I owe them a huge thank you. Thank you for the memories, the strife, the joys, the frustrations, for not being what I wanted, for giving me all you could, for giving up, not giving up, and giving me a reason to want more for myself. Thank you for all the ways you pissed me off so that I could get clear on what I truly wanted, and thank you especially for loving and supporting me the way you did, because it made me into even more. I release you, I forgive you, I adore you, and I wish you each nothing less than utter joy in life.

As I sit here on my couch with a smile on my face and in my heart, there is no place I would rather be physically, emotionally or spiritually. I feel at peace, whole and complete, and for the first time in a long time I am not consumed by thoughts of the guy I have been holding on to for what has felt like an eternity. It was only yesterday that I noticed the absence. And today it was confirmed. I have finally moved on. What a sweet freedom it is to no longer want the one who stopped caring long before I did.

So goodbye to him; the one who spent the better part of a year just trying to see me once more (and willing to drive 7 hours to do so), and goodbye to the one who wouldn't even drive 25 minutes to spend a night with me. Goodbye to the one who made me feel sick to my stomach, and to the other one who gave my kid the heebie-jeebies with his presence. Goodbye to the one who lied about his age not one, not two, not three, but four times before he got it right, and to my beloved Polish Prince who never went through with the first date. Silly boy.

Goodbye to the one from long ago who entered our home when I wasn't there, read my journal without my permission and then called me to give me shit about its contents. Now that's a keeper;) And goodbye to the one I asked out yesterday and gave my number to who decided to not even call. My friends deemed him an idiot because hey, I'm pretty awesome. But while that might be true, it doesn't mean I am every man's cup of tea. I know, I know. So very hard to believe, but alas, it's true.

Mandyland is certainly not for everyone, and it's definitely not for the boys. It takes some pretty huge balls to master and remain in Mandyland beyond one or two dates, that's for sure. People are often surprised that a woman like me is even single in the first place and can't understand any man who wouldn't do whatever it takes to be with someone like me. But let's be honest here. A woman worthy of having and keeping requires a man who feels worthy of such a thing, and that man must be prepared to be the kind of man that that kind of woman could truly fall in love with. This is no small task. If it were I would already be taken.

And if I was content with a sub-par relationship or something that merely fits on one or two levels, I'm sure I would still be wasting my precious life with whomever came before, but I am not because I can't. Can you blame me for holding out for the one who'll make my toes curl? Beyond more than just a few hours? I want and deserve it all and that's precisely why I'll get it. I don't care what other people put up with in their own lives because I don't want anyone else's life. I am the star of Mandyland and I wouldn't have it any other way. I have created my life through years of trial and error and I am superbly happy with the results.

So when it comes to love, it has got to be BIG. It has got to be worthy of my time and attention and it has got to feel right from the start. I don't fuck around. Life is too short to twiddle one's thumbs hoping and wondering and filling it with maybes and what ifs. I'm here to live as fully as I can and if some day soon or in the future I am blessed with a man who enhances every area of my life through his spirit, presence and love, well then sign me up!

Life feels wonderful right now because the possibilities are endless. There are so many new experiences to be had and I really do feel like I am starting a brand new life where the past is no longer dragging me down in any way. It's not very often I have been able to say such a thing so I am incredibly grateful for it.

I do suppose that this post is my way of bringing closure to a very long and intense chapter of my life, one that I loved more than I didn't, but even so, I wouldn't trade anything from it for the contentment I feel in this moment.

Life is good. It's ALL good.

With love,

Mandy xo


Post Script

After I posted this piece on Facebook a friend commented on it with this little bit of wisdom: "I have a theory about my 2 beautiful, talented single girlfriends. They are on paths that are really extraordinary - one is in art and the other is in healing. I believe that 'the man' would be a distraction. When you need all your energy in one place, it would definitely be a drainer. Boys on the side for now." I love it. And as I said to her in response, I have come to the same conclusion, but only recently. Life experience, especially over the last year or two, has taught me exactly what she just mentioned. And I would take this particular path over the romantic one fo sho because this is the work I was born to do and I cannot afford to have something or someone in my life that distracts me from my mission. Either they enhance it or they gotta go. I learned the hard way how energetically expensive it was to maintain things with guys that were less than fucking incredible on every level. Thankfully I'm in a good space now and my focus is like a laser! Me thinks the universe had been hinting all along to leave the boys behind because it's got bigger plans for me right now.

I finally listened.

Lessons in Elevation

I recently entered MANDYLAND into the WE Mastermind 5K Dream Business Start-Up Package and if I win I will be able to take MANDYLAND (and all that it entails) to the next level.

The voting round started September 5th and everyone can vote daily until September 19th, and in just 2 days of being part of this process I have discovered a number of things including how much I hate to compete, how haters have made me even more awesome and how you never really know who has got your back until it really matters.


1. I HATE COMPETITION.

Yes I know I am the one who entered this contest but 'winning' in the traditional sense has never been a motivating factor for me. My goal is to expand, take my work to the next level, and spread the word about what I am here to offer the world. This contest satisfies each of these things and also provides a great winning package at the end for the 'winner'. As I learned yesterday though, I hate following numbers each day because it stresses me out. I am in top spot right now but I fluctuate to second spot depending on the hour. Currently, I am going head to head with another fabulous female who is equally dedicated to her mission which means at any given point we are only separated by a few votes. Watch MANDYLAND VLOG #3: SHARING TOP SPOT to hear me discuss this exciting yet nerve-racking experience:)


2. I'VE BEEN FORCED TO GET CLEAR

The launch of WE Mastermind was the inspiration and motivation I needed to crystalize my vision, articulate what I am here to offer this world, present my work as a unified whole, and harness the immense support around me by encouraging my friends, fans, family and followers to participate in the 5K Contest. There was finally a push to think even BIGGER and put myself out there in a more visible way. Clearly I have come a long way from where I was: a reclusive writer whose writings only ever made it to her journals for the first 11 years. Now I have 20 blogs and counting, 2 published books, a number of pages on Facebook and a weekly column named after me. What a difference a few years can make.


3. NOT EVERYONE WILL BE ON BOARD

One of the most surprising aspects of this contest is becoming acutely aware of who supports me and who doesn't. More than a few times now I have discovered that I was wrong in my assessment of who does, and it has made me see things from a new perspective. Yesterday as the votes were tied between me and another, I became anxious about those who have chosen not to support me in this way even though they have been very vocal for months or years about how great they thought I was, how much my work inspires them and how I am the highlight of their Facebook experience. They, like me, are on Facebook daily and they finally have an opportunity to support that which has uplifted them for months or years, but for whatever reason they have chosen not to help me in a very tangible and easy way.

Maybe I was naive to think that my abundant personal offerings over the years through Facebook would warrant a vote per day from those who have been most active on my posts and updates and have devoured my written work for years, but I truly believed it would happen. Surprisingly it didn't. Not from the few key players I was sure would be as pumped as I was to do this thing at least. They are currently watching this contest, and probably reading this post right now (can you say awkward? lol), and are choosing not to vote for me even though those same people didn't think twice to vote for my daughter to win a modelling contest when I tried to recruit support on her behalf. Fancy that.

What I discovered late last night though, as complete strangers rallied together to get me back in top spot (which they succeeded in accomplishing by morning) is that I haven't actually missed out on anyone's votes. The ones who truly believe in the work that I do and genuinely appreciate what I offer this world, are the ones who are doing all the voting. Period. And so I let go of my disillusionment about the fact that a picture of a 16 year old gets more buzz than a concept that has the ability to transform the world and I move on. I also begin to trust more fully that those who truly matter will be right here beside me all the way to the top.


4. IT'S TIME TO MOVE LIKE GAGA (SORRY JAGGER)

Whether you are a fan of Lady Gaga or not is irrelevant to the fact that she is a force to be reckoned with in this world. The cream of the crop always rises to the top and I absolutely admire and respect her despite the fact that I would never intentionally listen to one of her songs. They are catchy and empowering for sure, but just not my thing. What is my thing however is Gaga's ability and courage to be herself fully and completely which inspires in others a desire to do the same. Her message is a clear and pure one based on love, inclusiveness and self-respect, and it is spreading such incredible energy throughout this planet every minute of the day that you cannot go anywhere without running into a Gaga fan.

Lady Gaga may not be your cup of tea but she will certainly never apologize for infiltrating the airwaves and the world with her sound and her style. This amazing ownership of her gifts, her unique way of being, and her mission in life is so dang inspiring to me and this is precisely what I would like to emulate even more.


5. SURE THEY LAUGHED, BUT I WIN

For years I have been either criticized or made fun of for the amount of pages or blogs I have, or how many updates I make on Facebook or even how much I talk in videos and on my radio show. I have gotten used to it but I am always hesitant to post as much as I produce because it is even more than I already share. Silly isn't it? What I am realizing through this contest however is that I don't need to apologize for being this awesome and multifaceted and I certainly don't need to hold back in any way just because other people think it's too much. I am not the average person that has one thing they love or are good at. I do a hell of a lot and I do it all well, and I am about to do even more.

So for the haters of the past, present and to come: You don't like it? It's too much for you? All my posts are annoying? Well, no one is forcing you to read my work, watch my videos, listen to my shows, follow me on Facebook or Twitter, or look at all my hot pics. If you're complaining about it all then you're paying great attention to it so thanks for being a devoted fan.


6. I WAS BORN TO EXPRESS

My gift is expression. Period. That means that posting updates, writing blogs, recording videos and doing radio shows is just like breathing to me. What is 18 minutes to you in video form (check out VOTE FOR MANDYLAND to watch my 18 minute plea for support) feels like only a minute to me. It takes no effort at all to express my thoughts and carry on a conversation; even if that conversation is only with myself.

And while some others have snickered and bitched about how open I am about everything, countless others have benefited from all that I've shared. They are entertained, inspired, amused and sometimes even feel moved to take positive action in an area of their lives. Their days are made brighter and they feel more expanded. They love the insights and they are more motivated to follow their dreams. They love being part of MANDYLAND and they wouldn't want me to change a thing. So for those people in particular, I am so glad I kept sharing my heart, my thoughts and my unique take on the world because as a result you continue to rock mine. As I have said in other posts, if it wasn't for your love and support I would have shut up long ago and we can't have that now can we?

So here's to pissing off and annoying the critics because haters gonna hate and lovers are where it's at.

Y'all fucking rock my socks!



PLEASE KEEP VOTING FOR MANDYLAND!


So please watch VOTE FOR MANDYLAND as it is my opportunity to share all that I do and tell you what I felt was necessary to know in order to make your decision to vote for me in the contest. Again, voting started on Monday, September 5th and you can vote daily until September 19th through WE Mastermind on Facebook. The winner is based on the highest number of votes received. Your support and daily voting would be greatly appreciated.

P.S. Here is a 2 Minute Promo Video for my entry in this contest and it is a super fun glimpse of MANDYLAND. Enjoy!

Thank you so much for all your support.

Mandy
www.mandylandrocks.com
xo