Saturday, February 26, 2011

Success is an inside job....

I remember a professor in one of my courses, some years back, presented findings on a study conducted by Dr. Martin Seligman on how positive mental attitude (PMA) impacts performance. So he studied PMA with sales agents at a major life insurance company. His findings discovered that those agents who anticipated a positive reponse outsold those who had a more negative outlook by 37%!! Even those agents who failed the entrance exam but who had high performance expectations, outsold the average insurance agent!!


In order to change our lives, we must first change our thinking. I have heard it said that we have up to 50,000 thoughts per day and about 70-80% of them are negative! If we are looking for positive results, we need to start challenging these thoughts. This practice is about both limiting our incessant negative self-talk and creating a new inner voice that tells us anything is possible!

Below are some strategies to start practicing. I can truly say PMA strategies have changed my life. Start taking control of your thoughts and see what happens!

1. Thought Awareness
- Start to notice your self-talk. Pay attention to your inner voice or even the outer comments you make under your breath sometimes. You know the ones..."What an idiot, I can't do that, I might as well just give up, I'm such a loser." When you catch yourself, simply reverse the thought and replace it with a positive one.

2. Thought Diversion
- When you are confronted with negative thoughts, change it to something else. Think of someone special, something funny, or a task you will be doing later. Sometimes it is easier to change a thought by actually doing something. When you start a task, your mind focuses on that instead of the thought.

3. Positive Affirmations
- Create a positive statement you can use at anytime and anywhere. For instance, let's say you have a new career goal of starting a new business, and negative thoughts keep creeping in doubting your ability to be successful. A very simple statement such as, "I will be successful" will work. Knock out the negativity by repeating this statement over and over again. This will have an impact on your subconscious mind as well and eventually it will become a more automatic thought.

4. Surround Yourself With Positive People
- Spend time with people who are positive, successful, and supportive. Ask them about their PMA and how they developed it. Ask them to support you in your goals and pursuits.

5. Educate Yourself
- Go to the book store and find books that talk about ways to develop positive thinking. One example is Dr. Seligman's book titled, "Learned Optimism...How to Change Your Mind and Your Life." There are many books that can teach you all sorts of strategies and others that introduce you to people who have achieved their dreams with PMA.

Good luck and have a great day...because it will be a good day!!!

2 comments:

  1. Great strategies on how to be more positive! I can definitely relate to those negative thoughts overtaking my scattered brain! Especially as an artist, I often catch myself doubting my skills and comparing my art to others. It's a frustrating cycle that I need to let go of!

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks so much for your comments and honesty about your struggle with negative thinking. As I am sure you know, awareness is half the battle, and sometimes it feels just like a war in your head doesn't it? Good luck to you!! Linda

    ReplyDelete