Mind Power - Focus Your Mind On What You Want

The great advantage of knowing what you want the most is that the power of your mind will help you get it.

Within your mind at an unconscious level is something called the Reticular Activating System. It’s almost like your own personal search engine which automatically picks up ideas and opportunities to help you move toward that goal.

It is the Reticular Activating System that is said to help you notice which of the millions of bits of information coming at you every second are the ones that will help you get what you want.

Another way of describing this concept is that “the thinker thinks and the prover proves.” Essentially, your mind is split into two parts:

• The “thinker” has total freedom and can think anything.
• The “prover” will find evidence for it.

So, if you’re focused on where you’re going – and believe you will get there – then the “prover” will find ways of supporting you and helping you toward your objective.

But if you have no clear sense of direction or you have doubts about your abilities, your “prover” will come up with evidence that you are right.

Keep your focus 100% on what you want rather than on what you don’t want. Either way, you might just get what you’re focusing on.

Focus has been described as Following One Course Until Successful.

So, if you’re not sure what you’re focusing on now, just check your results. If you’re not getting the results that you want, perhaps you need to change your focus.

• What is the single most important outcome you are focused on achieving this week?

• What are the three biggest outcomes you are focused on achieving this year?

• What activities are you doing or what thoughts are you having that distract you from these objectives?

• Can you change these thoughts or stop these actions?

Mind Power - Easily Get More Done Today

Whenever you set out to do something, you will always end up with one of two things:

• The result you wanted.
• An excuse for why you haven’t got it.

People who come up with reasons or excuses for something not happening usually see themselves as not having any control over the outcome. It was something they had no control over – the weather was bad; just wasn’t my time; I am unlucky etc …

Successful people on the other hand accept responsibility for whatever situation they are in and seek to change it. The truth is that, in most situations in life, you can either choose to be ‘at cause’ or ‘at effect’.

If you are ‘in command’ of the situation – either because you make it happen, or at least you take responsibility for your view of what happens – you’re on the cause side.

If things ‘happen’ to you or you feel at the mercy of events, you’re on the effect side.

If you want to be successful, you need to be at cause for everything that happens. That’s the way you’ll get results. It’s only by realizing that you are in control of everything that happens in your life (or at least your reaction to what happens) that you get the results you want to achieve.

Most people choose to live their lives getting more of one than the other.

The choice you need to make is whether to be one of the people who gets results or one who has many excuses for not getting them.

The good news is that whichever one you choose, you will be right – as you will always get what you want:

• If you choose excuses, you’ll be able to say ‘I told you so.’
• If you choose results, you will get them one way or the other.

The reality is that most people prefer excuses.

So, if you’re not getting the results you want, and you hear yourself coming up with excuses or reasons, try the following process to get yourself to the cause side:

• Write down your reasons or excuses for not being where you want to be.

• Look at each of these reasons from an attitude of being ‘at cause’, so that you’re taking 100% responsibility for them.

• Challenge your reasons. What can you do differently to get results?

If you focus on getting results, you will believe in your own power to change things. People who are successful act as though they don’t believe the excuses.

They believe in their own power to make a difference.

If you believe in results, you realize that you have the power to make a difference. Let go of any excuses you have for failure and you’ll get results.

That is the true power of having a success mindset …

Mind Power - How The World Reflects Your Thoughts

Here’s a story that shows how your thinking affects your results …

An old man was walking in the countryside when he met a young traveler coming up the hill. The young man stopped him and asked what the people were like in the village on the other side of the hill.

The old man responded by asking what the people were like in the village he’d just come from. The young man explained they’d been very unfriendly, very unhelpful and that was why he was moving on. The old man said, “I’m afraid you’ll find they’re just like that in the other village as well.” They both went on their way.

A short time later, the old man met another young traveler. He was coming from the same village as the first one. And again, the traveler stopped him and asked him the same question about the people in the village over the hill. Once again the old man asked what the people were like in the village he’d just come from.

The young man said they’d been very friendly and very generous and they made him feel very welcome. The old man answered, “When you get to the next village, I know you’ll find the people are exactly like that there, too.”

So why were his answers for each young traveler different? Actually, his answer was the same, but the effect was different because of the different attitudes of the two travelers.

This is known as ‘perception is projection’ – a concept originated by the psychologist Carl Jung. In short, the idea here is that what you see outside of you is a reflection of the thoughts, beliefs and attitudes inside of you.

Whatever you see around you is a reflection of what you’re thinking.

If you’re thinking positive thoughts, you will see things as positive around you. You will see opportunities around you. If you’re thinking negatively, you’ll see all the bad things that are happening and the problems.

You’re in charge of your thoughts, and therefore your results. So, be careful what you think!

• If you’re not getting the results you want, what are you thinking about that’s causing that to happen.

Mind Power - The Power of Your Beliefs

Your beliefs are what you hold to be true, and they determine what you can and can’t do. Henry Ford said, “Whether you believe you can or believe you can’t, you’re right.”

For example, if you have the skills of a great football player, but don’t really believe you are good enough, you simply won’t succeed. Skills and abilities on their own aren’t enough for success – whether in sports, business or anything else for that matter.

Hesitation and lack of belief is one of the main issues that holds people back the most from the success they could have.

In holding themselves back, they’re not only disempowering themselves, they’re also depriving others of the contribution that they can make.

Many people hold back because they are waiting for someone to give them the encouragement or endorsement they need. Often, their hesitation is encouraged by others around them who hold them back with comments like “that’s too much work” or “it’ll never happen”.

In general, your best chance of success is by choosing an area where you already know you have strengths that you can build on.

This will help ensure you have the belief that you need.

• On a scale of 1 – 10, how much do you believe in your own abilities?
• What 3 steps can you take now to improve your score and enhance your belief in yourself?

Mind Power - Do You Accept Your Motivations?

Some of us are surprised when we learn what our true motivators are. We might like to think of ourselves as fundamentally giving, altruistic and decent people. It can come as a shock when we uncover our motivations and find that many of them seem rooted in our own self-interest.

No one wants to think of himself or herself as being “greedy” or “selfish,” but sometimes we discover that even our most deeply embedded goals are very self-focused.

That shouldn’t be a cause of despair. Instead, you should understand that having self-focused motivations is entirely normal and isn’t something about which to be ashamed.

If your motivations all seem to stem purely from your own self interest without regard for others, that should be something of a “red flag,” indicating a need to look at the world and your place in it with a bit more consideration. However, most people won’t find themselves in that situation. They will, instead, uncover a variety of different motivations, a few of which will be matters of seemingly pure self-interest.

That is perfectly acceptable

Human beings are not completely dedicated to the well-being of others. Even the most “saintly” people derive some personal satisfaction from helping others. Their motivations, no matter how altruistic, also represent self-interest. The desire to pursue one’s own personal happiness is not proof of narcissism or selfishness. It is merely proof of being human!

Look at your list of motivations carefully. Consider the positive things that could grow out of those motivations for others, as well as for yourself. Evaluate them recognizing that self-interest is an instinctive, and perfectly normal part of human existence.

Discovering and understanding your motivations will be a critical part of achieving your full potential. In order to make them work for you, it’s imperative that you can embrace them and not feel somehow disturbed by them.

Mind Power - How To Test Your Motivations

We must unearth our most deeply held motivations and accept those motivations as part of who we are. Before we begin to take substantive action on our discovery, however, we should take a few moments to be certain we are about to follow the “right path.”

You can use a simple exercise to determine whether the list of motivations you’ve developed is an accurate portrayal of your inner self. This project involves comparing your past individual history to past efforts-both accomplishments and failures.

Take a few moments to list several things you have tried to accomplish in the past. Think about major undertakings that excited you, projects you felt almost compelled to do, and other important tasks you have undertaken throughout your life.

Don’t worry if the list is comprised of massive accomplishments or smaller attempts-this brainstorming session will provide you with a list of past experiences that still resonate within you, and that’s what’s important.

Now, take your list and provide yourself with a “grade” for each of those past situations. You can give yourself a standard “A to F” grade, or just rate your performance via some other system. The idea is to understand when you’ve done your best and when you have fallen a bit flat.

Now, go back over the list on more time and note what motivated you to undertake those tasks. Think back to what was pushing you forward as you started them and what sustained you as you were trying to complete them. This will allow you to compare your own personal tendencies toward success with the motivations you have uncovered.

Most of us will find that the motivations we’ve listed for ourselves fall in line, for the most part, with our own past experiences. Our greatest successes will usually be related, in some way, to those same motivations. The experiments that didn’t work out as well were usually motivated by weaker forces.

This exercise will allow you to better isolate which motivators really work for you and may even help you to discover another motivation or two you overlooked earlier. It’s a great way to test the motivations you believe work best for you against your own personal reality.

Mind Power - Uncovering Your Motivations

Uncovering and recognizing the things that truly motivate you is a fundamental building block of any self-improvement plan. If you want to live a more meaningful and fulfilling life, understanding your underlying motivations will be incredibly valuable.

That knowledge will allow you to better devise your goals and will help you to find ways of reaching them.

However, recognizing your motivations is not, by itself, a solution for reaching your potential as a person. It is a very powerful beginning and can shed a great deal of light on many other aspects of self-improvement, but it doesn’t represent a comprehensive plan for personal success.

You should learn all you can about motivations. You should have a theoretical understanding of the concept and why it is so important. You should have a very strong personal understanding of your own motivations and what they mean to you. However, if you want to change your life for the better, you should combine that knowledge of motivations with an overall strategy for personal fulfillment and success.

There are literally thousands of different paths leading to that same goal. Some of them might not work for you, while another may be an absolutely perfect fit. The challenge before all of us is to investigate ways by which we can live honest, successful lives and to make the effort to find a self-improvement strategy that will work for us.

Consider the possibilities. Do the research. Find a method that is consistent with your personality and your motivations and find the best way to reach your potential. You may discover a strategy that fits you perfectly; you may end up finding your own way.

In any case, you can use a solid understanding of your motivations as a long, strong stride down your path to personal growth and optimal well-being.