Tony Michalski's Master Key Coaching

I received this email from a fellow who is studying The Master Key System. I actually receive quite a few emails asking very similar questions about the exercises in Week One and Week Two. Here is his email to me -

I came across your website and had a question if you have the time. For exercise #1 you are to stay still for 15 minutes and let your mind wonder. Do you keep your eyes closed or does that not make a difference?

For exercise #2, you are to not allow any thoughts into your mind. The book mentioned this would be difficult and most would only be able to do this for a few moments. But how long should each exercise session be? Should I try to do this over and over again for 15 mins to a half hour or literally just try it for a moment? This one is going to be tough for me (lol).

For those who don’t know (or who don’t remember), here are what Haanel provides as exercises for Week One and Week Two.

Week One Exercise
44. Now make the application: Select a room where you can be alone and undisturbed. Sit erect, comfortably, but do not lounge. Let your thoughts roam where they will but be perfectly still for ?fteen minutes to half an hour. Continue this for three or four days or for a week until you secure full control of your physical being.
45. Many will ?nd this extremely difficult; others will conquer with ease, but it is absolutely essential to secure complete control of the body before you are ready to progress. Next week you will receive instructions for the next step. In the meantime, you must have mastered this one.

Week Two Exercise
30. Last week I gave you an exercise for the purpose of securing control of the physical body. If you have accomplished this you are ready to advance. This time you will begin to control your thought. Always take the same room, the same chair, and the same position, if possible. In some cases it is not convenient to take the same room. In this case simply make the best use of such conditions as may be available. Now be perfectly still as before, but inhibit all thought. This will give you control over all thoughts of care, worry, and fear, and will enable you to entertain only the kind of thoughts you desire. Continue this exercise until you gain complete mastery.
31. You will not be able to do this for more than a few moments at a time, but the exercise is valuable because it will be a very practical demonstration of the great number of thoughts which are constantly trying to gain access to your mental world.

Regarding the first exercise, it is probably easier to do it with eyes closed, since you won’t have to worry about blinking, which I would consider movement and you are supposed to keep perfectly still. So just sit, relax, and not move a muscle for as long as possible.

This exercise should illustrate to you a couple of things.

First, it will show you how many of your body’s movements happen practically subconsciously (or unconsciously). In other words, it will show just how little control we truly have at times over our own body! And if we can’t control ourselves to any significant degree, how can we control anything else?

To illustrate this point, think of a time when you witnessed a person who just could not control them self. They fidgeted, they fiddled with their hair, they kicked their feet, they swayed, they rocked back and forth. Whatever they did, you could just tell that they were a mess. They were not composed.

Just by looking at them we could tell something was … not quite right with them.

Don’t let that be you! We can tell a lot about a person (and we usually do tell ourselves a lot about a person!) by the way that person handles them self. So, on a very practical level this exercise has an application.

Second, since ALL of our actions begins with a thought, either conscious or subconscious, these unconscious movements indicate that there are unbidden and unknown thoughts occurring in our heads. Thus, by keeping ourselves still, we are limiting those thoughts, perhaps acknowledging that they are there, and setting the way for us to truly control our “inner world.”

There is no need to become a monk while doing the exercises in The Master Key System!

Just to make things clear, while it is important to master this exercise as much as possible, as I like to tell people, there is no need for you to become a monk! Do your best. Make sure that you can still your self, but by no means do you have to work to the “Zen monk” level of sitting still.

For the Week Two exercise, yes, you are supposed to quell all of your thoughts. Frankly, it is doubtful that you will reach fifteen minutes. Even five minutes may be pushing it! I think it is optimal to go for as long as you can, be that five seconds or five minutes.

While it would be nice to quell your thoughts for as long as you like in the “Zen monk” fashion, I think the main point of the exercise is to show you that you can notice when errant thoughts are there and that you can quell them at will. For me, the bigger point is when you put it into action in everyday life.

For example, we all run into those situations where we get into a mental log jam because too many thoughts are hitting us at the same time, thus causing our actions to be erratic or clumsy. That is when this exercise comes into play. You should be able to quell those thoughts, clear your head, and choose the best action for the situation–all at the flick of a switch. A mental switch, of course.

So, for the Week Two exercise, it’s not so important that you can quiet your thoughts indefinitely. The important thing to take away from this is that you can quiet those unbidden thoughts at will. That, my friend, is the key point you should take away from this exercise.

I hope this helps. Over time, I will write about the other exercises in The Master Key System. For now, just work with these. As always, feel free to email me your questions. If you really want to get into learning how to apply these exercises in your life, consider joining the Master Key Coaching Program.

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© Anthony R. Michalski/Master Key Coaching | Print This Article | (3) Comments

One of the most asked questions about The Master Key System sounds silly, but it is not as silly as it sounds. The question is -

How does one read The Master Key System?

You see, it does sound silly, until you realize that the book is divided into twenty-four chapters (weeks) and each chapter ends with an exercise, which Haanel implores you to practice for a week or so.

The confusion about how to read this book comes from the fact that originally The Master Key System was a correspondence course of sorts. In his “General Instructions to Students”, Haanel wrote -

The Master Key System consists of twenty-four parts, names of students are placed on an addressing machine and one part is mailed each week. They go forward automatically, and cannot be sent more frequently nor can they be held back.

Haanel implored his students to read each part at least once per day until the next part arrived. Then -

… write the replies to the questions in the first part, cut off and mail to me.

The completion and the sending to Haanel of the questions at the end of each chapter was necessary. These papers were returned to the student “with the correct replies for comparison.”

It should also be noted that Haanel at this time did not sell a bound volume (book) of The Master Key System. One had to complete the correspondence course before a book of all the lessons would be sent.

The bound volume is never sold to any one at any price, unless they have completed the study and made payment in full.

So, should one, when first encountering The Master Key System, approach the book as directed by Haanel?

While Haanel’s method is good, I have found that in some ways the times have changed and a somewhat different method is required.

If a person is approaching the book for the first time, I encourage them to read through it just as if they were reading a novel or any other book. I tell them to go from cover to cover and read, don’t pay too much (if any) attention to doing the exercises, and just get acclimated to the work.

Once the person has done this, then – and only then – have I found that he or she is ready to actually study the book with an emphasis on the exercises.

In my experience, far too many begin studying the book before they are ready – and within a few chapters they find themselves burned out or worse … Bored. I’ve found that when a person reads through the book and becomes familiar with Haanel’s jargon and style, then that person sees where the book is headed. They don’t get caught up in the minutiae. They’re not “excited” about what’s coming next because they already know. They’ve got the gist of it and now they are ready to truly experience the book and the exercises.

Think of it this way: It’s much like going somewhere for the first time. When you get there that very first time, you basically want to do everything at once. Your mind is running a million miles per minute and you are constantly distracted by everything because it is all new to you. Thus, you miss out on a lot – and you never really enjoy yourself.

But by the second or third time going there, you get to know your way around. You are calmer. You know what to expect and what you are going to see, so you can keep your eyes open to what truly interests you. And you can take it all in calmly and decidedly.

If this is your fist experience with The Master Key System, then read it from cover to cover. See what it is about. Then, when you are ready, take the time to study it as Haanel instructed – going week by week, reading each lesson once per day for a week, and practicing the exercises.

Most of all, when you commit to studying it, don’t quit. Finish your study. The Master Key System is the most cogent system of study for developing your mental powers of concentration and visualization ever written. The real value in the book is not necessarily what Haanel wrote regarding his philosophy and metaphysics, it is in the exercises. Take your time with them and truly work to master them as best you can.

The Master Key System is a powerful book, but it must be approached properly. Take your time with it. There is no need to hurry. As I often say, you must keep in mind that this is a race of endurance, not speed.

Or as Haanel would put it-

If a part comes before you are ready for it, put it aside until you are ready. There is no occasion for haste.

There is no occasion for haste – only understanding.

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© Anthony R. Michalski/Master Key Coaching | Print This Article | (3) Comments