Written by: Rick Lowe, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
What do you focus on most of the time? Do you find yourself being anxious about what life is giving you?How do you manage yourself mentally to move towards what you want?
As someone who has spent many years reading about and exploring techniques to develop myself into a growth-oriented individual, I have always returned to the key element of success, the mindset. When I think back to what has allowed me to succeed as an entrepreneur ‒ there are three qualities that spring to mind.
Tenacity. Drive. Perseverance.
These have undoubtedly been crucial in propelling me forward. Ultimately, there have also been many failures and disappointments, but the secret for me has been to find the strength within myself to roll the dice again.
Mindset is a crucial ingredient not only to success but in your general mental well-being as an individual. And with the big media focus on mental health currently, I wanted to share a perspective on how, I believe, it's possible to keep your emotions consistently finely tuned
Get perspective in your life.
Start with setting the right expectations. What I often find drives the most negativity in our minds is the conditioning that we can have it all, and have it quickly. And those around us, especially in our fields of expertise ‒ seem to effortlessly move ahead.
That is an illusion. By nature of us being human, we can fall into the trap of comparing ourselves to others, and it can be further magnified by the vicious cycle of social media.
Currently, I am writing my first business book.
And when I dive into the selection of successful authors, it is all too easy to start feeling disheartened and lose sight of my own personal reasons and goals. that inspired me to write a book in the first place. I have failed to hit my deadline to hand over the manuscript to my publisher three times. Initially, I set the wrong expectations. However, now that I have experience with what it takes to write a book, I am committed to enjoying the process.
So please remember that your life is your journey. You can't build a bulletproof mindset when you're constantly comparing yourself to everyone and beating yourself up when things shift.
The three takeaways to focus on:
Take personal responsibility
There is something powerful that energises the mind when you stand up and take responsibility. By taking personal responsibility for who you currently are, and for who you want to become ‒ this habit will inevitably shift your mind away from the valley of excuses and give you a sense of true empowerment. It can be nerve-wracking, but like any muscle, with practice, it becomes stronger. It will also push your focus toward your ambitions and dreams, diminishing the impact of negative people and other non-constructive circumstances.
You should also be ready to accept that in life, you simply cannot control everything. Control is another common antagonizer for a healthy mindset, which can steer you away from the actions you need to take to move forward. We've all been there when something throws us out of balance in life or business ‒ we become slaves to anxiety as we are powerless to influence. It can be anything from a cancelled flight, or a deal we lose simply because a few circumstances worked against us. The sooner we snap back onto what we can influence and what we can control, the sooner we start to move forward again to where we want to go.
Action is the driver
How many times do we get stuck in a cycle of overanalyzing or even worse, catastrophizing about a situation? Sounds familiar? It invariably holds us back and weakens us emotionally.
It is well known that you cannot change your emotional state by sitting still and gazing at one point. Taking action will change your emotional state and again shift that mindset to be closer to being bulletproof. Whenever I am stuck mentally, I will either go for a workout or a walk in nature. This has always cleared my mind and let me get back to a healthier mindset. Another good idea is to watch or read something inspirational – this can be a powerful lever to reset our thoughts.
A key facet of all leading successful people is that they are in a constant state of flow, they naturally build momentum. They can throw off setbacks and find the inner strength to continue to take a step forward.
We attract the circumstances we want into our life
It has never ceased to amaze me that when we are at our best, our most focused and confident, doors seem to open for us. Why is that? Well, fundamentally we all like to be around positive people and our ability to garner success in our own life is geared towards our ability to influence others. There has been a lot written about the Law of Attraction, masses of evidence that show how success is just like a snowball rolling down a hill acquiring more snow and getting bigger each minute. Success is the same, the more momentum you build around your ambitions, the more drivers will manifest around you to get you closer to your goal.
Add to that your commitment to take full responsibility for your actions and outcomes, meanwhile refusing to compare yourself to others. If taken seriously, you'll have all the ingredients to Build a Bulletproof mindset.
Challenge yourself this week to focus on yourself and what you want, take decisive action, keep your feet on the ground with the right perspective, and see what happens.
I wish you all the success you deserve.
Rick Lowe, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Rick Lowe, is a serial entrepreneur in the world of licensed fashion. Coming from humble beginnings of a small street market stall to the global market today using tenacity, resilience and determination. His journey has led him into co-founding Brands In Ltd, being a founding member of the Company of Entrepreneurs as well as a Past Master. His business life involves working with some of the biggest entertainment brands such as Disney, Warners and Netlfix as well as popular music artists, and servicing leading high street retailers with licensed fashion.
In London, Rick constantly strives for active entrepreneurship as an ambassador for Home Grown – London’s leading business club, providing personal and business development talks through public speaking, social media. He has already recently started to dive into the podcast space by interviewing key game changers in the space of business and personal development.
