goals – Page 13 – Empowering Your Mind

Set Yourself Up for Success

July 4, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

by Linda-Ann Stewart

Susan committed to eating a healthier diet and wanted to make sure she’d follow through on her goal. The first thing she did was go through her pantry and threw away chips and anything with sugar. At the grocery store, she bought fruits, vegetables and healthy proteins. She assembled healthy snacks ahead of time, so she’d grab them instead of looking for something inappropriate.

She used hypnotherapy to imagine staying on her plan, resisting temptation and enjoying her new treats. Through this mental rehearsal, she established a new habit and lifestyle, and easily avoided impulse snacking. Because she took control of her environment and developed strategies ahead of time, she created the conditions for success.

This same process can be used for any habit or situation you want to improve, personally or professionally. There’s an old saying, “If you fail to plan, you plan to fail.” If you leave the details to fate, hoping that you’ll take the right action in the moment, you probably won’t. Either someone else will decide for you, unexpected situations will get in the way, or inertia will keep you in place. And you’ll just fall back on what’s familiar and automatic.

The Problem with Willpower

Willpower will only take you so far. You need to have strong motivation to be able to get yourself moving in a new direction. Usually, your willpower flags if you get tired, stressed, bored or the results don’t live up to your expectations. Think of the last diet you were on. You probably stayed on it for a while and then began to slack off a little at a time. The slide began with Fettuccine Alfredo at the restaurant with your spouse, then birthday cake at your best friend’s party, and finally you gave up when you went on vacation.

Set Up the Conditions to Succeed

Instead of relying on willpower, set up the conditions ahead of time that will get and keep you on track. Do you want to lose weight, start to exercise or make follow up calls for your business? How can you design the situation to ensure you’ll fulfill your intention? For instance, to permanently lose weight, reframing the concept may help. Rather than thinking of being a diet, consider it a lifestyle change. Decide that you don’t eat certain foods or only a moderate amount of them, not only now, but from now on.

To begin an exercise program, get a buddy or schedule reminders in your phone. Set out your clothes or shoes so you almost trip over them. Start small, with a few minutes a day, and then increase the time as you get into the habit. Design the circumstances so that you know you’ll do it with very little effort.

How can you make sure you make those follow up calls? The night before you could decide on the list of people to call and put it on your computer. And you could reward yourself with something healthy, such as a break with your favorite book, when they’re done. Another solution would be to have an accountability partner that you’d call or email when you’ve completed your task.

Figure out how you can set up the situation so that you’ll behave the way you want. Formulate guard rails to keep yourself from drifting off course. Make as many decisions as you can ahead of time, so when a challenging situation arises, you’re prepared with a solution. The main item you need to develop is commitment to your vision, as Susan did. If you want it badly enough, you can create the conditions so that you’re successful.

AFFIRMATION:

The Universe wants the best for me and supports my quest to improve my life. I’m guided and inspired as to how to create the right conditions for me to thrive. Everything I need is already available from the Infinite. I simply need to look for and recognize it. I willingly accept my greater good.

Watch the accompanying video Planning for the Unexpected.

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Sparks of Insight

July 1, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

Are you distracting yourself from your goal? This could be a way to make sure you never achieve it, due to some old thought pattern or fear. The distraction could be in the form of chores, chaos in your home or business life, trying to appease others by putting your goals on hold, fulfilling others’ expectations and much more. In a way, you’re making sure you can’t accomplish your goal because you may not feel it’s more important than what others want, or that you’re afraid it may not live up to your hopes. No matter what, you deserve to stand up for what you want. Take one step or action every day in the direction of your goal. This will help to convince you and your subconscious that your desire is right and appropriate.

~ Linda-Ann Stewart

As a vision strategist, speaker, coach, and hypnotherapist, Linda-Ann Stewart helps women entrepreneurs and businesswomen who feel stuck to get a clear vision, focus on strategies, and gain control so they’re able to accelerate to the next level of their business. Sign up for her FREE guide, Take Control of Your Day.

Sparks of Insight

June 11, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

I remember seeing a television show where a working wife and mother spent all weekend trying to keep her house as clean and perfect as her mother did. She was killing herself and alienating her family by her unrealistic expectations. There was no time for fun in her life. She was counseled to lower her standards so that she and her family could enjoy themselves. So what if her refrigerator wasn’t clean enough for an inspection? Her family needed some together time in a way that created happy memories. Where might you be holding yourself to unreasonable expectations, and how can you lower them so that you can have a life? Chores will always be there, but today won’t be.

~ Linda-Ann Stewart

Sparks of Insight

May 20, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

Many people who have seen “The Secret” or have been learning about the Law of Attraction think that all they have to do is to focus on what they want and it will drop into their laps. Sometimes it does just that, but those times are rare, and generally preceded by a lot of work in that direction. Have you heard about someone, writer, actor, musician, becoming an “overnight sensation” after twenty years of being in the business? For the Law of Attraction to really work for you, you need to take actions in accordance with your desire. This convinces your subconscious that you truly mean business and are ready for that change in your life.

~ Linda-Ann Stewart

How to Train Yourself to be More Positive

May 7, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

by Linda-Ann Stewart

Your mind was programmed in the past without your knowledge. If you have negative programming, it was generally in response to fear, anger or safety concerns. Also, you uncritically accepted ideas from your parents, because you were too young to know any better. At that time, you simply didn’t have the experience to reject their ideas. And then you repeated those concepts until their belief became your beliefs.

As you grew up, you acted on those ideas automatically. By not assessing them to see if you wanted to believe that way, you were simply swept along by your thoughts. Because you haven’t challenged them, your subconscious acts on those dominant ideas and thinks they’re what you want. But you have a choice of what to think and believe. You can take control of your life. It all depends on where you put your attention.

What You Focus on Changes Your Brain

What you focus on grows more brain cells in that area of your brain. When you pay attention to the positive and possibilities, your brain grows more cells that support empowerment and action. You literally rewire your brain, which makes it easier to be positive. It’s a cycle that benefits your moods and mindset, and your thoughts inspire your actions.

So how do you choose your thoughts and program your mind? It’s as simple as it sounds, but not necessarily easy.

1. Become aware of what you’re thinking. You have hundreds of thoughts running through your head just below your conscious awareness. The point is to begin noticing what they are. Observe your mood, or if you’re avoiding something or taking some action that isn’t beneficial. Then listen to what you’re telling yourself. Because your self-talk, which are your habitual thoughts, will be underneath your attitude or actions.

2. Break those automatic habitual thoughts. Now that you’ve become aware of what you’re thinking, challenge those thoughts. Determine if they’re helpful or not. Just because they’ve been correct in the past, don’t be deceived. Past experience doesn’t make them true. It may be that they were a self-fulfilling prophecy or that you only filtered information that made them appear to be true. Ask, “In what ways could they be false?”

3. Choose what you’d rather believe. You have the power to change your thinking and your focus. Decide what you want to believe. Some people shift from expecting the worst to expecting the best. What would you choose to think? What idea would better support you and your endeavors? What would be the best outcome that you can imagine? When you consider these questions, you set your subconscious to seek beneficial answers and to find opportunities to make them true.

4. Focus on your new belief. Create a positive statement, mantra, affirmation, image or visualization that fortifies your new belief. At the beginning, you’ll have to use it frequently, because the old ideas will surface to test you. When they do, don’t fight them. They’re not “bad.” They are just from an earlier time and want to make sure it’s safe to make the change. Simply substitute your new ideas for the old ones. Repeat your new belief a thousand times a day if needed.

Keep bringing your thoughts back to the positive. The more you do this, the more brain cells you’ll grow that reflect positivity. This will make it easier and easier to find and focus on the positive. It’ll become a habit for you. When you take charge and master your mind, you condition it to be more positive and improve your outcomes.

Affirmation:
The Universe completely supports my decisions and endeavors. It wants for me what I want for myself. It’s safe for me to make the mental and emotional changes that are necessary for me to experience my desire, goal and vision. The old ideas once served a purpose, but they are now outdated. I now choose and focus on ideas and beliefs that are in line with what I truly want.

Watch the accompanying video, Meditation to Train Yourself to Be Positive.

Sparks of Insight

April 22, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

You can’t be positive 100% of the time. To do so would actually be detrimental to your goal. Just as when you’re walking down a rocky path, you gaze at the beauty around you, but you also scan your surroundings to make sure you don’t trip over a rock. By keeping your attention firmly fixed on your desire, you might miss important information that you need. Be aware of elements that might get in your way, but don’t let them take over your consciousness.

~ Linda-Ann Stewart

How Accountability Can Increase Your Success

April 4, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

by Linda-Ann Stewart

You want to start exercising to improve your health and fitness. But you can’t ever find the time to get to the gym or outdoors for a run. Life tends to push you, solving problems, dealing with issues, and handling crises. And your goal to exercise becomes a casualty.

Or you wanted to put together a new offer or product for your business by a certain date. But because other situations came up, you missed that self-imposed deadline. Life kept you distracted, and you didn’t focus on your offer or make it a priority.

With your life being so full and driven nowadays, it’s hard to set and reach goals. Goals take you off the beaten path, and set you on a new one. That takes energy, attention and persistence, qualities that are hard to maintain in today’s world. But if you are accountable, you can have a 76% greater likelihood of achieving your goal.

What Is Accountability?

Accountability isn’t handing over your responsibility or authority to someone else. Nor is it about blame, shame, guilt, judgment or punishment if you don’t meet your goal. It’s simply a way to keep yourself on track to your vision by committing to a goal, writing it down or telling someone about your plans.

For a goal of your choosing, you aren’t required to justify your decisions, actions or inactions if you fail. However, excuses aren’t acceptable. By being accountable, you’re taking responsibility for fulfilling whatever intention you’ve deemed to be important. You’re communicating to yourself and the Universe that your goal is a priority for you.

Ways You Can Be Accountable and Increase Your Success

Whether you want to change a habit, improve your life or build a business, accountability will accelerate your progress. There are a lot of ways you can become more accountable and some are more successful than others. Here are 5 ways you can be accountable. Choose the one that gives you the best chance for success.

1. Be self-directed. Think about your goal, how important it is to you, and what level of commitment and motivation you’re willing to have. This has the least likelihood of being successful, because it’s subjective and based on your level of self-discipline. However, I’ve used this tactic to maintain an exercise practice for almost five years because I was highly motivated.

2. Write down your goals and action steps. You’ve heard about how writing your goals down give you a greater chance of success. A Dominican University study found that if you do this, you have a 60% likelihood of achieving your goal. Keep referring to your goals to see if you’re taking the steps you’ve established.

3. Find an accountability partner. Tell or email a trusted friend about your goal, commitment and action plan. Someone now knows about what you want to do and will support and celebrate your efforts. I don’t generally recommend a close loved one for this role. Unfortunately, the loved one often gets too attached to the result and makes misguided efforts to motivate the goal achiever. These efforts often backfire.

4. Join or create a mastermind or accountability group. This takes the accountability partner approach to the next level. Not only do you tell a person or persons about your goal and plan, you also check in with them periodically (weekly), reporting your progress. With a mastermind, you’re also exchanging ideas to help you overcome challenges. This regular progress reports tactic gives you a 76% chance of achieving your goal.

5. Find a coach. Hiring a coach means you’ve invested in your success. People tend to be more productive when they’ve committed to a goal with their hard earned currency. A coach can not only help you gain clarity and work through obstacles, they can also keep you focused, motivated and on track. They’re objective, and can give you a different perspective and make sure you’re sticking to your priorities.

When you are honest and accountable about your progress, or lack of it, you hold yourself to a higher standard. You are being accountable to and for yourself, and to the Universe. This increases your sense of empowerment, self-worth, responsibility and effectiveness. Choose the best accountability method for you and reach for the stars.

Affirmation:
The Universe responds according to my thoughts and desires. It wants the best for me and will support me in my efforts. When I commit to a course of action, the Universe recognizes my intention and provides everything I need for success. I keep my attention on my goal, knowing that it is possible. And I hold myself accountable for taking the steps that I know to take. The Universe does the rest.

Watch the accompanying video, 3 Tips to Handle Obstacles.

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How to Build Your Momentum to Achieve Your Goal

March 20, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

Taking action towards a goal causes you to feel a sense of satisfaction and well being. This is due to a physiological response. When you harness that process, you’re able to build your momentum, just like a train pulling out of the station. Learn how the process works and use it to consistently achieve your goals.

Transcript:

Thank you for watching. I’m Linda-Ann Stewart, a vision strategist coach and I want to share a coaching tip with you to help you achieve your goals, vision and dream more easily. I’m sure you have a goal you want to accomplish. Do you work towards it every day? Or do other matters get in the way?

Working on achieving a goal encourages you because you feel a sense of satisfaction when you do. Taking action towards it triggers areas in the brain that release chemicals causing you to feel good. When you accomplish one step towards a goal, it triggers that release of pleasure chemicals.

Think of how you felt when you made a step in the direction of a goal. Didn’t you get a bit of a glow of well being? That’s the brain rewarding you for what you’ve done.

And because you feel good, it causes you to repeat the process, right? You want to feel good again. As you take another step, you get that sense of fulfillment. It’s said that a body in motion tends to stay in motion, right? In this case, it’s also that the more actions you take, the better you feel, because of your brain chemistry.

So here’s your coaching tip. If you want to build momentum, and trigger the brain’s reward circuit, take some action towards your goal, even if it’s just for 5 minutes. Even if it’s just one minor thing. It doesn’t matter how small the step, the brain rewards big and small accomplishments alike. The sense of joy and pride will encourage you to do more. And very soon, you’ll have achieved that goal and reached that dream, by using your brain chemistry to motivate you and build your momentum.

If you’d like some help in getting on course and achieving your goals, apply for a complimentary coaching consultation.

Thank you for watching. What one step can you take today that will trigger your brain’s reward circuit? Make sure that that step is one that takes you in the direction of your goal. Take care.

Read the accompanying article 4 Reasons Why You Don’t Pursue Your Dream (and What to Do About Them).

~ Linda-Ann Stewart

Empowering Your Mind

Mindset, Motivation and Empowerment

Browsed by
Tag: goals

Set Yourself Up for Success

July 4, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

Sparks of Insight

July 1, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

Sparks of Insight

June 11, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

Sparks of Insight

May 20, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

How to Train Yourself to be More Positive

May 7, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

Sparks of Insight

April 22, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

How Accountability Can Increase Your Success

April 4, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart

How to Build Your Momentum to Achieve Your Goal

March 20, 2019 Linda-Ann Stewart