We all share one world, but we really live in different realities. The way you see the world and the way you understand it can be completely opposite to the person sitting next to you. I am not referring to someone seeing a blue elephant when they are actually looking at a chair. Your individual views and beliefs about the world were formed as you grew up, based on what you saw, heard, felt and experienced and this is what has given you the reality you find yourself living in now.
Are you happy with your reality? Did you know that by changing the way you view the world, you change the results you have in life? That is really what sets us all apart, our beliefs and most importantly, that is what sets the more successful apart from the less successful.
The good news is that your brain is able to change the way that is currently structured and how it responds to the world. What does this mean? It was thought for many years, that once the human brain had developed it stayed fixed and unchanged and that is the way it would be for life. Ever heard of Neuroplasticity?
This is something new for scientists too and there is still a lot of learning to do, but we do know a few things. Neuroplasticity tells us that our brains are continuously changing, forming and growing new neurons and connections. This means, that we can actually change the way our brain is wired, because of the way we are thinking for example.
So how do you retrain your brain for success then? There are different ways, depending on your objective, here are some suggestions to get you started
1. Develop a mindset geared for success
Recognize the thoughts that you want to change. You can’t change the way you think if you don’t know what you want to change. The easiest way to do this is to create awareness around your emotions. When you are feeling sad, fearful, anxious, helpless, etc; basically limiting emotions, stop and ask yourself, ‘What am I thinking that is making me feel this way?’.
Hold that ‘thought’ and challenge it, is this fact or a belief?’ If it is a belief, ask yourself how this belief is serving you, it mostly likely isn’t. Then choose another perspective that you can take on that is more empowering.
Consistent effort to reinforce new beliefs. You need repetition to create another path (neural connection) that will override the one you currently have. How do you do this?
- Affirmations – An affirmation is a positive sentence written in the present tense that you would repeat to yourself over and over again throughout the day. Take out a few slips of paper and write down your affirmation, eg: I am confident and I believe in myself.
Try to repeat these sentences to yourself in the morning and evening and even better, at intervals throughout the day. It will most likely seem unreal starting out; you will have a voice in the back of your mind telling you that this isn’t true. Don’t focus on the voice, but rather focus on imagining that you really do feel this way. After a month or so of doing this consistently, you will find that the new thought has most likely overridden the old one.
- Subliminal messages
These are messages that only your subconscious mind notices. Imagine watching an advert on TV; and an image flashes saying ‘buy now’. You won’t see this image, but you will feel a strong desire to buy the product. Big brands use them all the time, although it is much more controlled now.
You can buy subliminal programs that you run on your computer while you work. You can choose the affirmations you want to appear and so while you are working, your subconscious mind is receiving new affirmations. A tip with these programs is to not have more than 5 affirmations at a time, as this will reduce the effectiveness. Also do this for a month.
2. Brain training games
There are many brain training games out there, I personally love Lumosity, a fabulous online tool. You can improve your memory, intelligence and executive function, whatever you goal is, this program has it. If you don’t continue to reinforce these neural pathways, your brain starts to atrophy as you get older. Research has shown that there is proven benefits to playing these online games for 15 minutes a day. After 1 month, you will definitely feel the improved difference.
3. Meditation
Meditation has been around for centuries and unless you practice it regularly, you won’t really understand how powerful it is. Besides reducing stress and anxiety, studies have also shown us that the act of meditating actually changes your neurons as well. Mediation actually changes the size of the different regions in the brain. The more you meditate, the more focused you feel and be able to concentrate for longer periods.
Unless information is applied, it is useless. How are you going to use this information to your advantage? You only have one life, don’t settle for less or what others want you to do. Be proactive in creating the results you want and the life you want, you won’t get another chance to come back and do it all again! What are you waiting for?
