Just think positive.
Expose yourself to more positive thinking.
Surround yourself with positive people
Listen to positive music.
These techniques are probably all things you have heard from late night hucksters and book promoters over the years. Positive thinking and positive reinforcement does have its place, and in targeted scenarios – it can be transformative.
However…
Positive thinking did not get that weight lifted at the gym. Nor did it help you achieve that career milestone. No, positive thinking is a start that is hamstrung fundamentally.
I have something that is going to completely sidestep the typical ‘positive thinking’ scenarios in a very simple and ruthlessly effective manner.
It is also simple.
I did not say it would be easy, and let me tell you – it is many times hard to actually follow through on what I’m about to share.
Srikumar Rao exposed me to quite a few ideas regarding resiliency and happiness techniques over a year ago when I took a class of his. I have to give him credit for sharing this technique with me, as it serves as the basis for this post.
I love the simplicity of this. Here we go…
Check this out. There is another concept underpinning what I’m about to share with you – which I’ll hit on another post – it is in regards to judgement.
In order to avoid needing positive thinking – avoid labeling things as ‘bad.’ As soon you sidestep the labeling things – you enter a world of facts that can be dealt with. There is substantial freedom inherent to this mindset.
No need to ‘program yourself’ to think positive. You can spend your time instead of attempting to switch your mindset to actually getting on with the work at hand.
Just recognize what it is that you are dealing with, and begin to grind on down on that reality to shape it into what you expect. No need to judge. Just acknowledge.
If you do this on your daily challenges, it will enable you to operate from a space of increased innovation, calmness, and incredibly predictable execution. I have in the past talked about variability and the need to reduce this in one’s life – over time.
Regular and increasing volume of action will outlast motivated, burstable, hucksters that are not in the game for the long haul.
Then here’s the magic ‘hack’ that will enable you blast through all sorts of barriers.
Get to work, and focus
On
The
Next
Immediate
Action…
And then execute on that, ruthlessly.
Ruthless focus on the NOW moment and the next action will equip you with ability to drive relentlessly forward even as so many others around you would wilt under similar circumstances.
Not very complicated stuff, actually quite simple – yet we have so many in our lives that tend to overthink this sort of thing. These are the people that have whiteboards full of alternatives, mind maps of possibilities, and many times are trapped by a lack of inertia.
Skip the postulating.
Do not overthink this stuff, especially in your personal life. Check your gut, consult a trusted friend/colleague with a few ideas, and then roll.
Here’s the summary for those of you seeking to juice your resiliency as we head into the weekend….
- Skip the positive thinking.
- Acknowledge the reality of the situation for what it is, without judgement. Deal with the facts, write down the key facts if you must.
- Simply say – this is what happened.
- Focus on the “What I have to do now”
- Get to work on the next immediate action, NOW.
- Execute ruthlessly while maintaining a focus on the present, NOW, moment
I am convinced that positive thinking creates more stress than it solves when compared to actually getting on with moving a given circumstance forward based upon some tangible action that other people will be forced to respond to.
Give it a shot and watch how the world around you responds…I’m willing to bet you’ll find more magnetic reactions than a positive thought.