More Steps to Living Your Best Life
Rev. Dr. Kitty Boitnott, NBCT, RScP
Heart-Centered Career Transition and Job Search Coach | Stress Management Coach
Sally Gunnell started her training as a pentathlete at the Essex Ladies’ Club in the UK in the early 1980s. As her prowess in sprinting developed, she concentrated on 100m hurdles.
Sally won a gold medal at the 1986 Edinburg Commonwealth Games. Her trainer encouraged her to attempt longer distances, and as a result, she earned another gold medal in 1989 at the European Cup 400m flat race.
She won gold again in the 1990 Commonwealth Games 400m hurdles.
In 1991, Sally lost her shot at gold at the World Championships because she glanced across at one of her rivals, and it unnerved her. She came in sixth place that day. But that loss made her change her mindset from that point on. She progressed to the finals at the Barcelona Olympics of 1992, where she won another gold medal.
Her new winning mindset brought her to the peak of her career. She went on to the World Championships in Germany.
Unfortunately, while there, she developed a bad cold. Her determination to win saw her through to the finals. But her illness forced her to rethink her decision to compete. She called for a press conference to announce her withdrawal from the competition.
At the last minute, however, she reconsidered.
She decided she felt well enough to compete after all. And her determination paid off. Not only did she win gold, but she set a new world record!
Successful people like Sally Gunnell develop a winning mindset. They encounter setbacks and moments of self-doubt, just like everyone else. What sets them apart is their rock-solid belief in themselves. This winning mentality sets the stage for their ultimate success.
Many of my clients ask me if it is really possible for them to reinvent themselves and start fresh professionally. I tell them that it is possible to the extent that they believe in themselves. They must believe that they can make the change they want. And they must be willing to do whatever it takes to make the change a reality. It takes a combination of belief in oneself and hardcore determination.
You can't win if you don't compete.
And you can't make significant changes in your life if you aren't willing to step outside your comfort zone.
Here are some other things you can do to develop a winning mindset.
1) Believe in yourself and your vision for your future.
Henry Ford famously said, “Whether you think you can or think you can’t, you are right.” He is certainly a good example of someone who believed in himself and his vision even when no one else did.
A winning attitude starts with a deep belief in your own abilities. It doesn't matter how much anyone else believes in you. If you don't believe in yourself, you won't achieve what you want to achieve in life.
It is normal to doubt yourself on occasion. Everyone does.
The difference between winners and losers is that winners can shake off their self-doubt.
Winners deliberately replace the doubts with a healthy dose of confidence. They remind themselves that they have the ability to deliver.
No one will buy into what you are selling if you don't believe in it yourself.
Always believe you are the best person for the job. When you are still in the early stages of your success journey, that belief seems elusive, I know. It may be buried deep within you.
But you can develop it with time and perseverance.
It helps to incorporate positive affirmations into your daily routine. Speak to your subconscious until you believe the affirmation.
There are many ways to incorporate positive affirmations into your thinking. Some people repeat the affirmations during their morning meditation. Others give themselves pet talks. Use phrases like “If I will it, I can do it!” or “I am the right person for the job!” or “I have what it takes!” These affirmations should become part of your regular messaging to yourself. They make the vision all that more attainable and within reach.
No one sells the dream better than the dreamer of the dream.
Your vision should feel real to you. That will help you make it easier to speak about it to the next person. It can also help if you visualize the victory you want whenever you feel yourself wavering in resolve.
2) Set attainable goals.
Dreaming up the vision for what you want is a wonderful start. But to keep yourself accountable, you need to set goals. Having goals is usually the main distinction between achievers and daydreamer.
Visualize what you want to achieve in the long run and craft your short term or daily goals. Use SMART goals to help you stay on track. Setting timelines around your goals will also drive you to work smarter towards the end goal.
3) Surround yourself with positive influencers.
Surrounding yourself with positive influencers cultivates a winning attitude. You want to find people who are pursuing their dreams and draw strength from them. Tap into the positive energy of like-minded people.
Mastermind groups are good for this kind of activity. People in similar lines of work gather together to discuss their progress and encourage one another. Perhaps you would benefit from forming a group like that.
4) Challenge yourself.
Your vision will stretch you outside your comfort zone. If it doesn't, it's not big enough.
Your vision for your best life should call for you to take a leap of faith into unchartered territory.
Taking that leap can feel intimidating for sure. People want to wait to make big decisions until they feel comfortable. But winners leap, believing in their ability to land on their feet. Thankfully, they almost always do.
If they do not land on their feet, they get right back up and dust themselves off, ready to jump onto the next challenge. They do not hang onto the failure but instead use it as a learning experience to help them in future endeavors.
A winning mindset dwells on the process more than on the results.
Making major changes in one's life takes time. The good news, though, is that a winning mindset is adaptable rather than rigid. The person with a winning mindset is willing to change themselves and their circumstances to pursue the greater good.
A winner’s mindset also calls for discipline because once gained, it also needs maintenance. Develop a winning mentality and set yourself up for success in all you do.
Everyone deserves to live a happy, successful, and rewarding life. If you have a vision for a life that you haven't attained yet, don't give up. Consider the changes you might need to make and then create a plan to help make them a reality.
You have this one life. Do the best you can to live it fully. No one can do that for you. It is up to you to reach for the success you want yourself.
Until next time.
P. S.
Hey, before you go. I have a question for you.
Are you feeling more stressed out than usual?
Chances are that you are feeling more stressed because of the pandemic and all the changes you have had to adapt to in recent months.
If you are a teacher, that may be an understatement.
Because I know that people feel really stressed out and overwhelmed, I have decided to host a webinar workshop titled, "Stress Management Tools for Teachers."
It's free, and I am offering it at 2:00 PM EST on Saturday, October 17, 2020.
I hope to see you there! And please feel free to share the link with friends and colleagues who might benefit from the information.
In this presentation, I will talk about the seven signs of teacher burnout (although it's not just for teachers) and tips, tools, techniques, and strategies for proactively managing and mitigating your stress.
Kitty
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