“You are not stuck where you are unless you decide to be.”
– Wayne Dyer
Do you believe your intelligence is fixed or changeable? Whatever your answer to this question, it has been one of the biggest factors to decide how your life looks right now. Pretty amazing how such a simple thing can have such a humongous effect, right?
But that’s what the power of mindset looks like in real life. It decides whether you give up on things easily or persist till you succeed. The key is to change your mindset that’s open to growth and based on positivity.
Why is a positive mindset important:
Our mindset is the lens through which we see & understand the world around us. Imagine how would the world outside your window look through a grimy windowpane? Would a beautiful day outside look so to you from behind that window?
Our mindset about something determines our response to situations related to that. If we believe something to be bad, it would be really hard to see anything good it might have.
A positive mindset helps you to come up with solutions to problems rather than get bogged down & stress out. It’ll show you the brighter side of things & of your capacity to handle them. Changing your mindset to a positive one is about boosting the appreciative & problem solving side of you rather than the doubting & excuse-generating side.
“The only real failure in life is not to be true to the best one knows.”
– Buddha
Plus, there are physical benefits too. Dr. Alia Crum of Stanford University found through at least 4 different studies the ability of our mindset to have a healing effect in the body. She found out what the placebo effect actually is about.
Basically, what you think about any food, action, or medicine has a big impact on how your body reacts to it.
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How do you change your mindset & attitude – positive mindset:
“Happiness depends on your mindset and attitude.”
― Roy T. Bennett
The 2 most important things for changing your mindset & attitude are
- Intention.
- Persistence.
1. Intention:
Being open to change isn’t something that comes easily to all of us. It involves uncertainty, doing things out of your comfort zone, & adapting to a new way of life.
The best way to motivate yourself is to find how you have changed over the last 10 years. Because whether we want to or not, our equation with our surroundings change.
Write down 3 things that are better about you now than your 10-year-younger self. These positive progress will trigger appreciation & pride in your mind. And these are exactly the type of emotions that are going to motivate you to change your mindset & attitude for the better.
2. Persistence:
Change on a mental level doesn’t happen in a single day. You can have an ‘aha’ moment & get inspired but it needs practice & persistence to bring about long-term change.
The key is to get very clear about the ‘why’ behind what you’re doing & that ‘why’ must be important for you to successfully change your mindset.
Happiness & contentment are two of the most sought after things in this world. Whatever motivates any person, you can track it down to this. And a positive mindset is what makes the journey easier to that goal.
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5 tips to change your mindset – redefining possibilities in life:
1. Read about growth mindset:
Even if you’re not sure whether there’s a need for you to change your mindset, just read about it. Becoming aware of the idea will show you the possibilities & choices available that you might have thought were closed doors. These will give you a reference point for further analyzing any situation whenever you feel stuck
Carol Dweck, a renowned professor of psychology at Stanford University found through studies that even just awareness about growth mindset gave people better insight into their situations.
Even if you think there’s no need for changing your mindset, awareness about the topic will help your mind analyze situations more effectively. Over time, you’ll be able to see for yourself where you might have a lack of growth mindset that’s holding you back or affecting your lifestyle.
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2. Deal with limiting beliefs:
Have you ever answered “that’s simply not me” or “I can’t….because….”? These are the beliefs that you have about your capabilities, talents, personality and emotional strength. But what is the basis for these limits that you’ve set for yourself?
Is it because setting these limits made life simpler some way for you? Or because some past experience made you believe it was true?
Whatever the reason, if these beliefs are keeping you away from your dreams or holding you back from living your life the way you want to, then these are your limiting beliefs. It’s important that you deal with them because they play a huge role in shaping the way your life looks.
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3. Challenges & comfort zone:
If change isn’t something you’re really comfortable with, it’s normal. Change means uncertainties. In our mind uncertainties equal danger. And danger triggers fear in us whether we like it or not. It’s a survival mechanism built in us.
For instance, what do you think about walking barefoot on glowing embers? Even if you were told it won’t hurt if you walk fast enough, would you be totally at ease? There’s even science behind it showing that as you walk quickly over the embers, the temperature under your feet can’t reach high enough to burn the soles. But it’ll still feel a bit iffy to take the first step, right?
Fear is what keeps you from taking challenges or getting out of your comfort zone. To challenge your limits & get things moving for the better you have to change your mindset. When we really start believing that it’s not about looking smart or dumb but about concentrating on developing our abilities, that’s when progress happens.
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4. Step back & take a look – often:
Whether you decide to change your mindset or not, it’s a good idea to take a step back & look at how your life is shaping up from time to time. What this does is give you a good idea of which things are working, what’s simply wasting your time, & what else needs to be done.
Because whether we like change or not, life does keep on evolving. So what worked earlier might not be as effective right now.
Plus, any successful changes that happened in your life will help you approach change in a more positive & motivated way. It’ll guide you towards a growth mindset for more positive changes that add value to your life.
If you’ve been consciously making changes in your attitude, taking a step back will help you see where your approach needs to be tweaked. You can make any successful change if you use the right strategy. And the right strategy develops from tweaking your action plan based on your progress.
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5. Feedbacks:
Feedbacks
Work on the constructive ones that help you move forward. And ignore the ones saying
- you did great but were performing at your maximum possible steam.
- consoling & pulling you back when you didn’t succeed.
- encouraging you to stay stuck where you’re.
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Your mindset matters because it decides how you make decisions, deal with challenges, & generally face life. To really succeed in life, focus on growing as a person more than looking for approval or confirmation of your capabilities.
Change your mindset to focus on learning rather than proving yourself. That’s how you break the upper limit on your potential & really grow.
What does changing your mindset mean to you? Let’s head over to the comments section & continue our discussion there.
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