The Bottom Line For All Success and Achievement is Your BELIEFS
Do you agree with what the greatest Self-Help Success
author of all time Napoleon Hill (author of Think & Grow Rich)
said, "Whatever the mind can conceive and believe it will achieve"? I've
learned- often the hard ways- that what your mind believes you will
ALWAYS achieve: Good, bad or indifferent. Unless and until something
comes along to "change your mind." Your beliefs create your
paradigm of life- the way it is, whatever the "it" is we're talking
about. There are paradigms for every domain of life and work. "A paradigm is your belief about the way it is. It's your "worldview" of the matter no matter what's the matter." A
classic example of a marketplace paradigm (worldview, belief) is the
wristwatch: Until the 1970s, geared timepieces- the "Swiss watch"- were
the dominant paradigm; jeweled movements, mainsprings, winding
mechanisms (think Rolex). With the development of cheap semi-conductors
and wafer thin batteries, the quartz watch (think Seiko)- with its
greater accuracy and low price- became the new paradigm of wristwatches. In a more a human arena, a paradigm is the underlying belief we are operating from. Our
beliefs are habits of thought- those things we think about a given
subject most consistently and frequently and for the longest time- and
the associated feelings that come with those thoughts. Beliefs and
memories are the same thing. A memory becomes a belief the more often
it's recalled and the more powerfully we infuse it with our emotional
energy. One important thing to know about our beliefs and
memories is they are NOT the truth. They are always our interpretations
of events in the past. Just like six eye-witnesses to the same street
crime will describe six different sets of details... or at various
stages and ages in our lives we remember the exact same incident very
differently. "Our memories and beliefs-our paradigms-are NOT real. We MAKE THEM UP." And they can change in an instant when new, more compelling information becomes available. The
following is a true story told by Frank Koch, which appeared in an
issue of Proceedings, the magazine of the United States Naval
Institute. It dramatically illustrates how one simple, yet profound new
bit of information completely changed a very big paradigm 180 degrees
in an instant. As background, let me explain that at the time of
this story, a battleship was THE most formidable navel war vessel in
the world. It was three football fields long (longer than most
skyscrapers are tall), weighed 50,000 tons and carried a crew of 1500
sailors. It also had nine 16" guns that could fire a one-ton explosive
"bullet" and blow up a target as small as a tank 23 miles away. Two
battleships assigned to the training squadron had been at sea on
maneuvers in heavy weather for several days. Koch was serving on the
lead battleship and was standing watch on the bridge as night fell. He
recounts his experience. "The visibility was extremely poor with
patchy fog, so the captain remained on the bridge, keeping an eye on
our navigation activities." "Shortly after dark, the lookout on the wing of the bridge reported, 'Light, bearing on the starboard bow!' "The captain called out, 'Is it steady or moving astern?' "The lookout replied, 'Steady, captain,' which meant that we were on a collision course with that source of light. "The
captain then called to the signalman, 'Signal that ship: We are on a
collision course... advise you change course 20 degrees.' "Back came the signal from the other ship. 'Advisable for you to change course 20 degrees!' "The captain barked, 'Send, I'm a captain... change course 20 degrees immediately.' "'I'm a seaman second-class,' came the reply. 'You had better change course 20 degrees!'" "By this time, the captain was furious. He spat out, 'Send, I am a battleship! Change course 20 degrees.' "Back came the signal from the flashing light...' "I am a lighthouse..." All
it takes to change a paradigm- or a belief- even the most firmly
entrenched and universally agreed upon, is one new piece of
"compelling" information. Admittedly, with a belief that you and
I have held on to as our dominant paradigm for 20, 30, 40 years or
more, that may require some focused and consistent effort over time.
But if the experts are correct and you can establish a new habit in 21
to 28 days... you're always less than one month away from changing your
life for the better forever. So, how do you know what your beliefs are? "Look at your life right now. . .
That's what you have believed up 'til now.
Don't like what you've got?
Change your beliefs.
It's the only way." Think of it like this: Your
beliefs are your operating system, and exactly like the OS Whatever
(DOS, Mac, Linux, Unix) on your computer, your beliefs organize and
control all your human hardware and software, so everything works the
way it's supposed to. Now, you'd be crazy to run your computer
with software developed back in the 1960s or '70s. (The computer in
your cell phone is more powerful than any desktop was just 20 years
ago.) And you'd be totally nuts to depend on an operating system
designed by a five or six-year old "programmer" wouldn't you? "But that's exactly the kind of software you're using right this minute to run your life. . ." YOU
OS 1.0: Fundamental beliefs MADE UP in the mind of a little child- and
most probably a disappointed, dissatisfied, discouraged, disheartened
little "programmer" trying desperately to safely navigate the stormy
seas of life and protect him or herself from pain. "If you're anxious about what other people think of you. . .If you're afraid of failure and rejection. . . If you have any of the FADWAS (Fear, Anger, Doubt, Worry, Anxiety, Sadness) or more importantly, if they have you. . . If no matter what you do it's never good enough or never enough. . . Then it's time to install a new operating system." As
soon as possible would be good. And this time, preferably make it a
system designed by an authentic, intelligent, sincere and serious adult
who knows, likes and trusts you. One who cares very deeply about you
and is passionately committed to your life and success. Know anybody that fits that description- perfectly? You are "The One": The best one... and really you're the only one qualified for the job. Problem
is: This one is NOT one of those "Do it yourself" deals. Self-help
won't work too well here, because the "self" itself is part of the
problem. As Professor Einstein was quoted as saying: "We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." Remember,
our beliefs are habits of thought, so can you understand how those very
same thoughts that formed our beliefs are neither willing nor able to
un-make them? When you're working on developing and installing a
new and improved Operating System- your fundamental beliefs about who
and how you are, and the way life really is- self-help
doesn't work, because you and I are blind to the beliefs that limit us
and stop us from living in 3D- as we Desire, Dream and Deserve. We are battleships heading straight for a lighthouse. Help-
which has gotten a "bad rap" for most of us since childhood where it
was mistakenly viewed as a sign of weakness (and has been negatively
promoted as such by too many of the popular human potential gurus and
their personal development workshops)- is absolutely what we need. Help, in the form of new and more compelling information. (Again: "I am a lighthouse.") Help
in the form of a new way of working directly with our beliefs that will
shift unwanted, self-sabotaging beliefs to empowering beliefs that
assure your success... fast, in a proven way that lasts. "What your mind believes you will achieve
- all ways and in all ways." Thanks.
I appreciate you!
John Milton Fogg is an internationally recognized writer, editor, speaker and coach. He authored the million-selling classic, The Greatest Networker in the World. His most recent project is BeliefBusters and his vision is to have over 30-million people change their lives for the better forever by shifting their unwanted, self-sabotaging beliefs to empowering beliefs that assure their success fast, in a proven way that lasts. To sign up for your free weekly BeliefBusters Report and learn more about this life-changing 3-month course to Build Self-Esteem... Stop Negative Thinking... and Be Healthy, Wealthy and Happy please visit us today! |
