Are you ready? Boost your focus!
{Original Article could be found at https://shaneram.com/are-you-ready/ }
Every individual has hopes, dreams and aspirations beyond what he/she is today. But what are the things that really holds one back? Is it the lack of knowledge, desire, mentorship, or money?For the greater part of my life, although I knew I had knowledge, desire, mentorship and money, I was not ready to accomplish my hopes, dreams and aspirations. This frustrating experience that I previously underwent helps me to put myself in your shoes too. The frustration level in me may have been a little bit higher because I did not push myself to live my hopes, dreams and aspirations.
William James once said, “Your hopes dreams and aspirations are legitimate. They are trying to take you airborne, above the clouds, above the storms, if you only let them.” I firmly believe in his words because your hopes, dreams and aspirations will NEVER get erased in your mind even if you have been pushing it back to the corner of your mind.
Besides, various situations that life poses will definitely make you rethink on where you are, where you want to be and want you want to do. It is said that hindsight is 20/20 and this holds high significance in my life in many ways. Though I had hopes, dreams and aspirations, my negligence and laxity thwarted me from achieving success. Looking back at my life, I attribute my unpreparedness of following my dreams to three main factors. They are:
1) Lack of actionable knowledge or the ‘right knowledge’
2) Poor mentorship and coaching, and
3) Lack of associations
These three aspects are intricately linked and when properly combined they form a tremendous force that pushes you towards your hopes, dreams and aspirations.
Importance of Right Knowledge, Mentorship and Associations
Today, I can specifically recall two situations from my life which clearly demonstrates, how having the right knowledge, mentorship and associations would make a big difference.
The first time I had chance to experience the importance of right knowledge was when I attended a conference conducted by American Society for Training and Development (ASTD now ATD) in San Francisco in the mid-1990s. While attending the conference, I also had an opportunity to attend a session on BHAGs, Big Hairy Audacious Goal – an idea that was conceptualized in the book, “Built to Last: Successful Habits of Visionary Companies” by James Collins and Jerry Porras. The session was not only interesting and valuable but also inspired me to implement various ideas to my work.
In their book, Built to Last, James Collins and Jerry Porras have laid equal emphasis on the importance of ‘Core Values’. The clear understanding of every word of the book made me go back to my organisation and leader to discuss and examine the next phase of our company’s development. It is then, we decided to implement the core value programmes which turned out to be a resounding success.
Gradually, I learnt that the lesson on BHAGS, was too extensive for me to grasp. Moreover, I had no mentor or right association to discuss the information I comprehended. It is here I realised that right mentorship and association are highly beneficial to maximise the value of these sessions and more importantly, to carry out some specific actions after gaining knowledge. I firmly believe that the knowledge, mentorship and associations that are essential to live our hopes, dreams and aspirations are all out there, it’s just that we are not ready to receive them. In short, we are not programmed to accept them.
At the time of the conference, I could not grasp the importance of setting Big Hairy Audacious Goals because I was not exposed to it before and none of the people I associated with at the time ever spoke about having big goals. Today, I have Big Hairy Audacious goals only because I started to read different books from what are used in most universities and I started to associate with the people who are living proof of having set and achieved Big Hairy Audacious goals.
I got the right information almost 20 years ago but was not ready for it. How different my life could have been if I was ready to receive that information back then. Are you ready? Do you have the right mindset and mentorship?
How to ‘programme’ your mind to achieve success?
Did you ever have a wish of buying a car? Did you suddenly start to witness many such similar cars on road? Most likely your answer would be yes.
It is important for you to understand that the car which you wished to buy was always there on roads, but your fondness for the car has caught your attention. Before you conceived the idea of buying the car in your mind, though you witnessed several of those cars, you failed to pay attention because it was just another car on the road. The difference is that you have now started to FOCUS on that car, so you started to see more of it.
The brain has a Reticular Activating System (RAS) that operates similarly to Google. Your brain processes millions of stimuli. It is important to prioritize and focus on those things which we wish to achieve. How do we instruct the brain on what to focus on? The brain captures your most consistent thoughts that have strong emotions attached to them. Programming your mind can be done by FOCUSING on your repetitive thoughts.
Accordingly, when you frequently think about the car that you want to buy, it starts to program the RAS and whenever the same or similar car passes in your vicinity, your attention is drawn towards the car amidst of all the other stimuli in your environment. You tune out of all the other sights and sounds around and only tune into the car. When you get clear on your goals and place focus on it, you will begin to see the opportunities to realise to hopes, dreams and aspirations. Lack of focus is the major hindrance while chasing our dreams, hopes and aspirations.
In the meantime, if you are absolutely focused on your dreams, hopes and aspirations, we will take you through the complimentary strategy session to set you on the right path. Register here https://shaneram.com/happiness-strategy-session/ and reap the benefits of this complimentary session.
The second situation where I received insightful information, but was unprepared was when I was purchasing a piece of land. The owner was selling the land at half the market price. Therefore, I assumed I was getting a really good deal.
Despite landowner’s explanation, I failed to understand that the land gained value only if it was sold or rented out. For that reason he sold the property and invested on another that offered him consistent and regular cash flow. I purchased the land for $50K and he invested that money on a backhoe which he is renting for daily income. I am sure he has made several thousand on my $50K while I have not made a cent on my investment. However, with the right knowledge now, I have promised myself not to commit the mistake again.
This failure was due to my unreceptive to the information provided to me.
He understood the importance of cash flow but at that time I did not, at least in the wealth context. I later understood the importance of cash flow only after I read a few books and attended seminars on wealth creation. This experience prepared me enough to receive the right information, irrespective of subjects..
Actionable Knowledge and the Right Knowledge –‘‘Right’ knowledge is the one that will best help you live your hopes, dreams and aspirations. The knowledge must also be actionable so that you can immediately implement what you have acquired.
Though I have earned two Master’s Degrees, I have learnt that this isn’t the right knowledge required to achieve success in life. If you have not lived your hopes, dreams and aspirations, despite spending considerable time and money in education, you have not received the ‘right’ knowledge. Build to Last has undoubtedly set me on the right path while providing me with enough knowledge to achieve success. The books that lead you to the path of success is certainly neither available in universities nor in the libraries of companies.
Please share with us your comments below when you find actionable information.
2) Mentorship and Coaching – Books, schools and Youtube are all good sources of the ‘right’ knowledge but I have found that it is best to have a coach or a mentor who helps you translate and transfer the knowledge into action. According to me, every person needs a mentor (someone who has achieved success) to help connect the dots. A coach must be someone who has successfully implemented and translated the knowledge you now have.
In fact, while reading Think and Grow Rich, the knowledge that I acquired the author’s grandson, Dr. J.B. Hill, from my two interactions was priceless and was something that was not found in the book. The wisdom shared with me by mentors, after successfully following the principles laid down in the book, Think and Grow Rich, not only helped me knowledge possession but also inspired me to raise above my belief which immensely contributed to my success.
The value that I received and continue to receive from my mentors and coaches is by far the single best investment I have made. The best mentorship and coaching is to have a one–on-one relationship with someone who has achieved a specific goal that you would also like to achieve in your life.
Let me know who your coach or mentor is. If you don’t have one, let us know the date you plan to get one.
3) Associations – it is said that your future is shaped by the books you read, the things you look at and the people you associate with. Your success is more dependent on the ‘WHO’ question(s) rather than on ‘WHAT’ question(s). Who do you read or listen to? Who is your coach or mentor? Who is in your success circle? Who do you associate with?
In retrospect, it is not that the people I associated with were bad when I did not know the purpose of life, but it is that they could not help me with where I wanted to go. When I found the purpose, I did not have anyone who I felt I could talk to about it. For that reason, I have decided to be that ‘someone’ who people can speak to about their hopes, dreams and aspirations and confidently embark on their journey towards success.
Who are the five closest people you associate with?
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- How to identify whether you have job fulfilment or not. (You may think you’re happy, but most people find out they really aren’t).
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About Shane Ram:
Shane Ram is a Happiness Engineer and Life Coach. He is the inventor and creator of Scientific Happiness, a proven system to help you find job and personal fulfilment. He has worked with thousands of people over the last 18 years from over 70 different countries and therefore, his understanding capability of people is a deeper way than most other people. He is a husband, father, author, human resources expert and entrepreneur. #ScientificHappiness #Happiness