5 Ways to Achieve a Successful Mindset

19 January 2021|Latest Posts, Psychology

By Ryan Jackson.  Is success simply a state of mind? Whatever your views, actively cultivating a successful mindset is a sure-fire way to become more productive, less stressed, better focused and able to achieve your goals. Here are my top five ways to develop and sustain this positive mentality.

1 Make time for self-care

Caring about your physical, emotional and mental wellbeing is not selfish, but essential. Put your own oxygen mask on first, to ensure you’re in the best state of mind and health to steer your business forward and support others. It’s vital to get adequate rest, relaxation and sleep. Being a business owner can feel like a 24/7 job but it’s vital that you recharge effectively otherwise you’ll be on a road to burnout. The same goes for your diet – nourish yourself with healthy food and water. Regular exercise is also important for maintaining a positive mindset as well as your physical health. Training helps you switch focus for a while, giving you a break from business worries and ultimately helps build resilience. Other ways to clear your mind and ease stress is by through connecting with nature (even just a simple walk around your garden), and music.

2 Value creation above competition

Do you have a scarcity mindset, a deep-rooted belief that money is scarce, jobs are few, opportunities are limited and so on? With this way of thinking, there’s a sense of having to struggle for what you want. Or, if you don’t fight, you take flight or you freeze and do nothing (because you assume there’s nothing you can do). This scarcity belief might have developed in childhood, learned from family, teachers, or culture. You grow up thinking that you have to either work hard and be the best or believing that some people are just lucky and there’s nothing you can do because there isn’t enough available money, success, opportunities out there for everyone. To cultivate a successful mindset, focus on creation rather than competition. Competition is based on the belief that there is only one pie available – and you must battle others for your slice. Creation, on the other hand, suggests that there are infinite riches and possibilities. If you’re naturally a ‘scarcity’ thinker, a good tip for starting to change your mindset it to notice how you speak to yourself and others. Turn around negative phrases like ‘I can’t do that’, or ‘there’s not enough’ to words of positivity and possibility. If ‘I will…’ is too much of a stretch for you, start with ‘I could…’, through to ‘I can’. 

3 Revaluate your circle

Your friends and your bonds should lift you higher. Our relationships are hard to compare as they differ from person-to-person and different friendships bring different things. But you must begin to identify how they make you feel and whether they truly complement where you want to be in life. If you realise that some of your friendships are not encouraging you in your life plans or helping your mindset then set your intent to form new connections with those who want similar things in life. This needs to be an equal exchange, as your friendship should offer as much to them as theirs does to you. 

4 Shift your perspective 

If you are feeling overly negative and pessimistic, visualisation techniques are clever tools to assist you in seeing any challenge or problem from a different standpoint. These practices can also be used to help keep you motivated to reach your goals. Through the focused awareness of visualisation you can open the doors of possibility and enrich your world in incredible ways. Imagine positive outcomes and make them vivid and multisensory. What the subconscious sees, it believes. Try the following exercises: 

· Create a compelling vision of yourself reaching your goals or achieving success. Imagine you’re living it, and make it multisensory: feeling what you’d feel (e.g. pride, joy, happiness); hearing what you’d hear (applause, congratulations, happy voices), and seeing what you’d see (thriving business, happy customers/family, big house). 

· Can’t see the wood for the trees? Look at a problem (the tree) as if it is far away from you. Take a helicopter view, so you can see the big picture (the wood) and see its context (within a wider landscape). Then, zoom in, and see the details in new ways. Things might not be as they seemed before. You might find the precise detail needed to take the next step. You’re opening your mind to new insights and new perspectives, creating mental space for new solutions and new realities.

· Use affirmations: By repeating positive thoughts and phrases, you can reprogram the subconscious mind with new beliefs, new stories and new ideas; all of which will manifest in your physical reality. Thoughts become things. 

5 Try meditation

A few minutes of quiet reflection first thing in the morning can make a huge difference to your state of mind throughout the day. Don’t disregard it if you’ve never tried it before, there are many apps and online resources out there offering guided meditations to get you started. Or you can simply focus inwards, concentrating on your breathing. 

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