Your Most Important Skill: Change Your Thinking Habit
As a high school wrestler, seeded sixth in the district (out of six, aka: last), my father saw that I was worried about starting the tournament against the number one seed, a brute of a wrestler.
So Dad gave me a book called Psycho Cybernetics by Maxwell Maltz.
It’s a about the power of the mind, focus, the power of belief to bring things into being (heady reading for an 11th grader).
I devoured this book!
I now realize this was the beginning of my lifelong quest for wisdom and insight and ultimately finding/creating ways to program our brains for the greatest good… my career!
I got to where I believed 99% that I could win.
And that’s exactly what happened… down 3-2 in the final seconds I was executing a reversal which would have put me ahead, but just barely behind the buzzer.
Like a high school version of the first “Rocky,” I lost, but I went the distance and beat up on the champ.
We tend to achieve what we believe.
Most importantly, I realized how simply changing the way I think drastically improved my performance.
That experience, combined with everything I have learned since, brings me to this conclusion:
Success in anything – careers, relationships, parenting, health, etc – requires that we continually transform the way we think.
For most of us thoughts just happen, randomly, or based on our environment and experience.
We rarely even consider, let alone become intentional about what we’re thinking.
And some of us have the challenge of “stinkin’ thinkin’,” all-consuming doubts and negative thoughts.
So, how do you and I transform our thoughts?
The answer is…
Questions.
The most basic cognitive human brain function is to ask questions, and our brains do it thousands of times a day, never verbalized.
Those questions are the inner dialogue going on inside all of us, which by the way does nothing less than define the quality of your life and all of your results.”
Let me say that again:
Your questions and inner dialogue define the quality of your life and all of your results!”
Does your brain ask questions like, “What if I could do that thing I’ve always dreamed of, how would I?” “What if we had to do this better, how could we?”
Or…
“Why am I so lazy?” “How come nothing works out for me?” “How can I get out of work today?”
The fact is you have power over your thoughts and it’s time to take control.
If I had to say that any one thing contributed most to my success it would be intentionally changing the way I think.
It’s a hard journey at first, but from what I’ve just shared you can program your brain for success:
Right now: Make a list of positive questions and turn them into mantras that you read in the morning, repeat to yourself through the day, read again at night.
You’re developing the thinking habit.
Also, if you are serious about improvement, to save you the years of the pain, trial and error that I spent, allow me to offer a powerful new resource.
It’s described below in the PS.
Either way, it’s time for you to transform and program your thoughts for success through the intentional use of positive questions.
Live truly, truly live,
Rayburn
PS… The What IF Challenge launches in the next week. Here is an overview.
“The What IF Challenge.”
The What If Challenge is 16 powerful sessions (listed at bottom), each a fun, 3 – 4 1/2 minute video with a carefully chosen “What If?” question designed to transform and align your innovation, mindset and performance.
Outcomes of The What IF Challenge…
In about four minutes per video, and a few minutes of focused brainstorming you (and your teams for organizations) will…
* Create a bigger vision for what’s possible.
* Develop an innovative, “What IF” mindset
* Stop managing change and start creating change
* Create extraordinary customer experiences
* Turn problems into opportunities
* Harness your uniqueness and creativity
* Reinvent intentionally
* Create more time each day
* Renew your sense of purpose and service.
* Unleash your hidden potential
* Create a powerful personalized plan for becoming world class, your personal best.
Here’s how it works…
When you enroll you will receive a welcome video and directions to set up your own, personal account on my website where you can type and save your answers. Also, if you prefer, you get a PDF workbook to plan and brainstorm on paper. Or, create your own “What IF Journal,” simply using a spiral binder as I describe in the videos.
The next day you will receive your first challenge, and a new challenge emailed to you each week for 16 weeks.
You can also start immediately and work at your own pace with 24/7 access to the library of 16 challenges.
Also, you have lifetime access so you can repeat the process yearly, again and again as the challenges are designed to be timeless.
As a subscriber and part of my Virtuoso Community you will receive a 90% discount from the investment. It happens next week and I’m getting excited!
Here are the titles of the 16 sessions:
Creating the Perfect Vision
Possibility Thinking
Courageous Innovation
Extraordinary Customer Experiences
Intentional Reinvention
Creating More Time
Turning Problems into Opportunities
Setting and Achieving Bold Goals
Overcoming Personal Challenges
Harnessing Your Uniqueness
Innovative Culture
Influencing Others
Drawing From Your Purpose
Unleashing Your Potential
The Virtuoso Decision
Your Virtuoso Plan
