Three key ingredients contribute to our success:

• 10% skill-set
• 40% mindset / willpower
• 50% environments

You may be surprised to note that only ten percent of success is due to skillset. I know I was! But when I also learned that we think 100,000 thoughts a day, I realized just how powerful our mindset is. Of course, our environments play a huge role in supporting our success or failure, as well.

Are your thoughts supporting your success or your failure? Your thoughts form your mindset. Some people beat great odds by sheer willpower or mindset.

Let’s take a closer look at the power of mindset and willpower.

You can probably think of people you know who have an “I can” attitude and consistently do amazing things. You probably also know at least one person who has an “I can’t” attitude. These are generally the people who are known for having “bad luck.” They’ll tell you that they have a black cloud following them wherever they go.

Actually, the black cloud is not following them; they are pulling it around with them! If you suggest that they have choice about the “bad luck” they keep attracting, they may get angry with you. They don’t like to hear that they can choose otherwise, because it serves them to play the victim rather than taking responsibility. You’ll notice that such a person is constantly blaming others for their circumstances. The “blame game” makes it much easier to accept what they’re getting. Looking inward can be very painful, so they usually avoid doing so. If you want to delve deeper into this topic, read my article, The Power of Personal Accountability.

Master your thoughts, and you'll master your life!

"Self-discipline begins with the mastery of your thoughts. 
If you don't control what you think, you can't control what you do.
Simply, self-discipline enables you to think first and act afterward."    
-- Napoleon Hill

In a physical sense, most of us enjoy freedom. In an emotional or psychological sense, however, an estimated 80% of the population puts themselves into a self-imposed prison cell on a regular basis. We forfeit our freedom of choice through our own thought processes.

I frequently hear people say, "I have to…" or "I gotta…" or "I should…" And when I hear those phrases I often ask, "Do you have to or do you choose to?" There are very few things in life that we have to do. Yet some of us forfeit our choice to the point of seeing our options in life as limited. This generally leads to a feeling of hopelessness when someone sees no way out of a bad situation.

There may indeed be times when you are not at choice…when you truly are a victim. And sometimes we slip into the victim role when, in fact, we DO have choices. The first step toward getting out of a victim role (whether self-imposed or not) is to recognize the choices you have. 

We learn at a very early age that if we act a certain way, we will achieve a certain result. Often the result we opt for is safety. And safety is necessary to preserve our physical well-being. However, our desire to be "safe" sometimes paralyzes our ability to exercise our free will. From childhood on, most of us have been programmed to "play it safe," and this often affects the choices we make as adults. We tell ourselves, "That was so disappointing before, so I better not take that chance again."

Do you allow your fear of hurt, rejection, or failure to determine how much risk you are willing to take? What is the cost of doing this? Perhaps you're stuck in a job or career path you hate, or you are in a relationship that does not serve you, or you've chosen not to pursue a relationship you want. Do you struggle with low self-esteem and self-confidence? If so, you are probably severely hampering your ability to manifest what you want in your life by convincing yourself that you should not try, or that you do not deserve what you really want.

Choices are strongly influenced by disempowering emotions. By learning to recognize and step out of experiencing these emotions, a whole new world of possibility will be available to you.

When I feel out of control or like a victim, I think about this powerful equation:

E + R = O (Event + Response = Outcome)

What precedes the equal sign is called a variable, and what follows the equal sign is called the quotient.  In order to change the quotient (the Outcome), you must change a variable.  Often you cannot change one of the variables -- an Event that happens in your life -- but you can choose your Response to that Event.  By choosing your Response, you will affect the Outcome.

Don’t let your emotions rule.  This is where E + R = O becomes such a powerful tool to use!  Do you allow your emotions to determine your commitment level to achieving your goal?  Focus on what you choose … not how you FEEL at the moment.  Also note that there is a difference between emotions and intuition.  Ask yourself, "Is this coming from my head or my heart?"

A heartfelt urging (intuition) is worthy of your attention.

Here’s an example. You’ve made a commitment to yourself to clear your desk before leaving the office each day…and at the end of the day you feel really tired and not in the mood to put things away.  You just want to get home, have dinner and relax.  Here’s how E + R = O works:

Event:  It’s the end of a workday and your desk is a mess.
Response #1:  You decide to leave your desk the way it is and go home.
Outcome:  Tomorrow morning you come into your office and feel defeated before the workday even begins.  As you look at what is on your desk, you feel overwhelmed, distracted, stressed and out of control.  You just got there, and you're already counting the hours before you can leave the office.

Event:  It’s the end of a workday and your desk is a mess.
Response #2:  You spend your last 10 minutes in the office filing things away and you drop the outgoing mail in a mailbox on your way home.
Outcome:  Tomorrow morning you come into your office and sit down at a clear desk.  You spend the first few minutes planning how you will focus your energy and time for the day.  You feel calm and in control and you actually look forward to the day ahead.

When you combine mastery of your thoughts with the creation of supportive environments, it makes for a very powerful and positive outcome.

TAKE ACTION CHALLENGE

1. Identify one thing that you want to upgrade in each of these areas of your life: happiness, health & wealth.
2. Identify a scenario or recurring event in your life that you want to be different than it is right now.  State the OUTCOME for this, as you want it to be. Example:

   Happiness: I am having dinner with my family at home three times a week.

   Health: I am sleeping 7 or more hours each night.
   Wealth: I have purchased my second real estate investment property using my self-directed IRA account.

3. Using the E + R = O formula above, identify how you will adjust your response to current or future events in your life, so that you can achieve the outcome you desire in each of these areas of your life.

Check back next month to learn more about how to upgrade your nine environments to better support your success.

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