"Mindset" - so important in daily life.

Princeton University defines "mindset" as a habitual or characteristic mental attitude that determines how you will interpret and respond to situations. One thing that I have learned in my life is that mindset is everything. Once you begin to dread something and you develop fear about a situation, it becomes much easier for the experience to play out the way that you have it in your mind because you lose confidence in your ABILITY to make the experience play out in a positive way. I have seen professionals and students make the mistake of believing their own bad publicity. They broadcast ahead of the result what their greatest feared outcome is, and then they cause themselves to fulfill it. Rather than approaching a day filled with trepidation with the attitude that they can overcome their fears, they have learned to go ahead and do exactly what it is that they know will lead to their failure. How unwilling we can be to learn from our own experiences.

So how does one go about changing their own personal mindset?

Author and self help guru Steven Covey wrote in the 1980s about the "abundance mindset". Simply stated, the theory of the abundance mindset is that a person believes that there are enough resources and success to give freely to others and that truly optimistic people are the people that share. It is commonly contrasted with the "scarcity mindset", which is founded on the idea that, given a finite amount of resources, a person must hoard their belongings and protect them from others. Individuals with an abundance mentality are supposed to be able to celebrate the success of others rather than feel threatened by it.

I'm reminded of some stories of the most generous and sharing people in society who were often times the poorest and least able to share. Some of the least generous can be the "wealthiest". But in what way wealthy? Money is not the only way to determine wealth. It is just the most common way. I feel  that I am tremendously wealthy in that sense. I have the opportunity to share with others every day, and I work hard to do so. It has been my experience that the more positive and giving that I am, the more that I have. The less I give to others, the less I have.

Find someone today in your life who has a success, no matter how small. Find a way to celebrate that. If you see a person who has taken a great photograph or has painted a beautiful picture, let them know that you see the beauty of it. If you see someone who is struggling with self confidence, find a way to help them see their value. It will enrich you, and it will lift them up. This is the real key to successful daily living.

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