You Think So?

Your bank account doesn't represent the money you made; it represents the decisions you made. Thinking about financial resources in this way prevents deflection. In a world of economic measurement, the most appropriate measuring stick isn't our money; it is our mind.

Metacognition is what they call it, "they" being psychologists. The term means to think about how you think. Use your thoughts to critique your thoughts. The process is powerful because, among other discoveries, one may discover their thoughts are foreign invaders. Squatters. That somehow, what belongs only in the mind of the dreamless has made its way into the ambitious, a kind of intellectual infection.

When I coach clients on how to elevate their storytelling, I have discovered something. All the tools in the world, all the insight, and wisdom one can muster are no match for a visionless construct. Those who can only see what exists can never properly tell a story about what does not. One cannot point to the invisible hope when fixated by the hopeless evidence in front of them. Your belief system, your thinking are both buried in the spirit of your story.

Stories are spiritual. Emitting more than words, ideas, and concepts. On the deep end, stories transfer the soul much like a great singer can transfer their heart to yours. In the shallow pool, stories reflect optimism or despair. Intention jumps into the words you say, much like danger jumps into the smile of a stranger who means you harm.

Stories have no sovereignty. They are subjects in the kingdom of your mind. Stories reward the height of your thinking by providing wings to go higher or punish the depths of your disbelief by granting your audience apathetic boredom.

My neighbor came over the other day. He heard I wanted to learn carpentry, and he, being a master carpenter, offered suggestions. He gave me a list of tools to buy and books to read. I was grateful and ready to learn. At the end of our conversation, my optimism that one day I may be able to put together a halfway decent bookshelf had risen to new heights. My belief I could learn and his belief he could teach gave wings to my carpentry dream.

Before he left, I asked one question, "What should I build first?" To which he replied, "Whatever you want to build." He refused to limit me to his ideas. He empowered me to create my own.

I have a question for you. How do you think? Think about it.