The year I gave away $2 trillion dollars (no really)...

From September 2018 to September 2019 I gave away $2 trillion dollars (no really). I wanted to inspire creativity, confidence, strength, self-worth, the idea that what we say and do matters, that each of us can make a difference in our world, our personal universe. I believe that every individual is the center of the universe and that the universe revolves around each one of us. I hoped that I could get someone else to make the world a better place because I didn’t know how. I hoped to inspire a change in someone that would eventually make my world, my small universe a better place.

I did this by making people instant multi-billionaires by handing out $20 billion dollar bills from Zimbabwe. That first person that I gave a $20 Billion dollar bill to was Ryan Blackstock and it was right after the talent show at Camp Xanadu. He and his wife coordinate and run Camp Xanadu. He was stuck making a very hard decision about whether or not to continue having the Camp Xanadu Catalina experience. I asked him to imagine what his life would be like if he was a multi-billionaire and what he would do. Without hesitation he said he would do this (continue having these events). I gave him a $20 billion dollar bill and asked him to find a way to make that happen, I needed the safe supportive environment that the camp created and I’m sure there are others that need it too.

After Camp Xanadu I set a quiet goal to talk to 100 people and to hand out $2 trillion dollars (that’s a $20 billion dollar bill x 100 = $2 Trillion Dollars). My wife was the only other person that knew about my goal and she continues encouraged me to step out of my comfort zone, to be authentic, to live more in the present, and the not worry so much about the outcome. This was not easy for me because when I started this journey I found myself to be a shy, quiet, introvert that didn’t have the courage to start a conversation with a stranger. So I took 100 challenging steps forward.

That's me talking to Melissa and Linda at Camp Xanadu- Welcome to the billionaire club! Photo by Jason Power

I had some really great conversations with complete strangers, or people that were out of my league (cooler, smarter, great looking, talented… you get the idea). People that I would have been too shy to talk to, but I had a goal and I was determined to try. Sometimes I’d pick a person that was going thru a rough patch in life. I’m very observant and can catch on to that stuff pretty quick, even when people think they are hiding it. Sometimes it was a person that needed a motivational push forward and a chance to look at the world and themselves in a whole new way. Sometimes it was me proving a point on how easy it is to be a millionaire or billionaire and that being detailed in your wishes and goals really does matter (that could be the difference between  Zimbabwe dollars and dollars from United States of America).

My 100^th instant billionaire was the only person that I really got to see a breakthrough and my impact on that person. That was really special for me and I felt like I too can and did make a difference in this world. The rest were mostly just a conversation with someone that I might not ever see the deep impact that I had on them. I haven’t really thought about it since then, but it was working the whole time. There was a camp Xanadu in 2019, Rayna made it happen after all.  And I find it kind of funny now that I didn’t see my impact, I didn’t notice it, I didn’t feel it, even though it already happened. I was unaware of all of it until now. And that gives me hope that maybe, just maybe there are 99 other people out there doing something great. That there are 99 others that are making my world a better place and I just haven’t noticed it yet, and it’s already happening. After all, that’s exactly what I set out to do.