Welcome to the second part of our three part mindset series. You can view the first post here.
Mindset Hack #2 Focus on the road , not on the wall.
When racing car drivers are in training, one of the lessons they learn that in order to take a corner at 200mph they need to focus on the road and not on the wall.
Focus on the ROAD, not on the WALL
If you focus on the wall you will DRIVE straight into it.
If you focus on the road, you will FOLLOW the road.
And that’s true for whatever your desired outcome is.
Focus on what you want and not on what you don’t want.
Put another way…where your attention goes, your energy flows.
If I were to say to you “Don’t think of a pink elephant” what happens?
That’s right.
In order to not think about something, we first have to make a representation to ourselves of what not to think about.
And often, this leads to us taking action we don’t want
For example, if you want to lose weight, you might think or say to yourself “I can’t eat take-aways” and then you’ll almost immediately start thinking about all the foods that fall into the category of take-aways for you. Because you are thinking about them, you may start to crave them and because you are craving them, you may then just think to yourself “I really fancy some take-away Thai right now” so you order a take-away.
You do what you’ve just told yourself that you DON’T want to do. So, what do to instead?
Focus on what you want.
“I am going to eat healthy and nutritious foods”. The same thing will happen. You’ll make a representation to yourself about what healthy and nutritious foods look like, taste like, smell like, feel like… and you will be more compelled to move in the direction of what you want rather than what you don’t want.
In fact, let me ask you right now:
How much of your thinking is about what you don’t want to have happen or what might happen if things don’t work out in the way you hope they will?
The answer to that one question will always determine your ultimate success. You see, the secret to all success is to be able to stay focused on exactly what you want regardless of how long it takes, or what else is currently happening, or what temporary obstacles might be in your way. It is this single ability to stay focused on the end result – no matter what – that will ultimately enable you to make it happen in your life and business.
Just like a computer, your brain has an incredible search function. It’s programmed by what you focus on and what you identify with.
It’s called your Reticular Activation System or RAS.
Once you identify WHAT you want, your RAS activates to help you to make it happen by constantly searching for opportunities to make what you want a reality. It helps with the HOW.
It’s not about POSITIVE THINKING (although that helps!)
It’s about taking INSPIRED ACTION towards what you want.
You can make sure that you are focusing on what you WANT by answering these questions:
1. What do I want to do, be or have? (Clarity – positively stated)
2. Why do I want it? (Motivation – the values that guide you)
Once you determine WHAT you want to make happen and WHY you want to make it happen, you have begun the journey to making it a reality.
And you’ve also activated the incredible power of your mind and your RAS to help guide you to the HOW along the way.
Key Steps
1. Get clarity about your desired outcome (the destination)
2. Get specific about your motivation (the fuel that will keep you moving, even if things don’t go as planned)
3. Take deliberate action to move towards that desired outcome (the journey)
What one action will you take to focus on what you want today?
LEARN HOW TO MAKE IT HAPPEN
Mindset Hack #3 There is no failure, only feedback
As you’re making it happen, things may not always go as you had imagined that they would.
Challenges, obstacles, and life! may arise along the way and you may end up drifting off course or having to take an unexpected detour.
For example, your child becomes ill, you move house or you’re running an on-line business and you have no internet connection at home for several months.
In fact, your journey to where you want to be will most likely not be a straight line from A to B but more of a long and winding road. And you’re the navigator.
The key here is to develop the resilience and the agility to know what to do in these situations to stay focused on your ultimate outcome and keep moving in the right direction.
To pay attention and make changes as necessary so that you can stay on course.
To use your sensory acuity to notice and measure your progress. Pay attention to what you’re seeing, hearing and feeling as a guide to what’s working and what isn’t. You can then take action to do things differently, to change tack and get back on track.
The beauty of accepting ‘mistakes’ as feedback rather than failure, is that they provide a fabulous opportunity for learning. And 99% of the time, no-one else is aware that you’re not quite where you wanted to be.
Here’s a quote that illustrates this perfectly.
Who knows, like Edison and the lightbulb, JK Rowling and Harry Potter or Dyson and the Dyson… you may just create a whole new dance craze!
The Importance of Resilience and Agility
MAKING IT HAPPEN is also about developing a POSITIVE REACTION to perceived FAILURE.
To see it as an OPPORTUNITY rather than a threat to your ultimate success.
If you view your progress in terms of “success” or “failure” you’re not fully utilising the power of your mindset.
And you’re not fully utilising your ability to LEARN from the feedback you’re receiving and adjust your course accordingly. Many people avoid feedback, preferring instead to keep going, even if things AREN’T WORKING. Even if they’re not getting the results they desire.
Have a think – what feedback loops do you have in place – in your life and in your business – to monitor how you are progressing towards your goals?
You’ll most likely have access to a range of external (eg the number on the scales, your bank account balance, the number of stamps in your passport, the number of clients you have) and internal (eg I’m feeling lighter / more abundant / free / in flow / like I’m doing a great job) ways of gathering feedback.
Write your feedback loops down now.
Then ask yourself: How do I view feedback?
1. Avoid it at all costs
2. I welcome feedback, it’s part of the learning process
3. Interesting, I wonder what that means?
6. I need to work out what happened so that I can make improvements
7. They’re not ‘mistakes’, just opportunities for learning something new.
“Making it happen” is all about the process of discovering what doesn’t work and what DOES.
And doing more of THAT.
Here are four journal prompts you can use to reinforce this mindset hack.
What did I learn today?
What will I stop doing?
What will I start doing?
What will I continue doing?
Stay tuned for Part 3 of our mindset hack series tomorrow.
For now, I’d love you to join me in the She Makes it Happen! Program where you’ll create the mindset, accountability and the plan to make ‘it’ happen in your life and business.
And please remember to comment and to share this post to those who want to Make it Happen! too.
LEARN HOW TO MAKE IT HAPPEN
With all my best wishes