By Todd Hutchison
There exist too many talented business people that fall short of success. They have the right skills, contacts, qualifications and the ideas, but something seems to be working against them. In fact, that something is inside our very own mind – we are our worst enemy.
How often has your lack of confidence, self-esteem, limiting beliefs or self-doubt impacted you from taking that next step or closing that last business deal? You walk away mystified that you 'almost got there'.
You may have heard that we only use 10% of the human brain, however it was attempting to convey is the likely ratio between the functions of the conscious mind (10%) compared to the more dominant subconscious mind (90%). It is the subconscious mind that is responsible for your survival, but is also the bank for all our core doubts, fears and limiting beliefs.
If you are having money problems, just take a moment to think of all the sayings you recall from your childhood about money, such as 'money doesn't grow on trees' and 'money is the root of all evil'. Now consider if you believed in all these things – what would that be doing to your life? You may find your deep seated beliefs are reflective of the results you are getting.
It all starts with past events that are stored in the memory. For a memory to exist it had to be given the power of an emotion. This explains why the most exciting events and those where we experienced our greatest pain become our strongest memories. Bringing it down to basics, your memories are simply pictures, sounds or feelings. Those moments when you are self-sabotaging yourself, you are playing something similar to a musical record in your head that attribute to their negative mental state. You may be playing 'you're not good enough', 'you're not smart enough', 'they don't like you', or 'they won't be interested'. This little voice or the picture of a past failure or that terrible feeling of unworthiness all directly impacts your brain neuro-chemicals that drive your behaviour and emotional states.
Dealing with these records starts with recognising what are the pictures, sounds or feelings you are experiencing during these moments of struggle, fear or doubt. The interesting thing is that you are the record player and can choose to change the record at any time.
Visualising your success is a way to create your own success record, as research has proven that we create the same neuronetworks in our brain over time as if it were a real life experience. We come to believe it is true, just as the compulsive liar comes to believe their lies are truth in the same way. Similarly, affirmations or positive self-talk also create a new record, providing it is something that we believe is true and possible. Visualising or saying affirmations do not work unless they are done with emotion – remember emotion makes it a memory!
So next time you are thinking of something that is causing you issues, recognise what the pictures, sounds or feelings that make up the record you are playing are, and choose to replace them with more positive and empowering thoughts. When you are focusing on creating a more positive mental state, wiring your brain for success, releasing neurochemicals that help improve your cell health, and bringing more joy into your life, then you regain the control.
The basic rule is the record with the highest volume wins.
Todd Hutchison is the National Chairman of the Australian Project Management Institute Council, Chairman of the Swan TAFE Audit Committee, and Managing Director of People Rich Pty Ltd www.peoplerich.com
