In
1994, Wall Street broker Jeff Bezos read a statistic that made
his eyes pop: The world wide web was growing at a rate of 2,300%
annually.
Because
he knew that growth like that didn't occur outside of a laboratory
petri dish, Jeff asked himself a question: When I am 80, will
I regret not having jumped onto this wave of opportunity? His
answer was a resounding, YES!
In
short order, he quit his job, loaded his belongings into a moving
van, and with his wife at the wheel of their old car, his laptop
on his knees, they headed west while he crafted a business plan
en route. The
story is still unfolding, but the current chapter is internet
history. Today, Jeff Bezos is a wealthy, successful man, the company
he launched a household name: Amazon.com. His venture survived
the 90's crash of the dot coms, as did his prediction of a long
investment cycle, followed eventually by a profitable harvest.
The
Question
How is it that phenomenally successful people such as Jeff Bezos,
Oprah Winfrey and Bill Gates create such extraordinary outcomes?
Whatever the field of endeavor, what makes some people consistently
excel, while others struggle or stop? Talent? Brains? Fate? Luck?
The people that surround them?
The
Key
While many of these factors do have some bearing, perhaps the
most important distinction can be found in the teachings of the
ages.
Since
the beginning of written history, mystics, religious leaders,
philosophers, and today psychologists point to the impact of our
thoughts and beliefs in creating outcomes. People like Bezos,
Winfrey and Gates have clearly used their gifts…but to say they
are the smartest or most gifted, that somehow their upbringing,
education or credentials surpass others, or that they were dealt
the luck card in the game of life would not be accurate.
Instead, what separates them…and truly successful people from
any walk of life…is the quality of their thinking. I call it Power
Thinking. In the simplest description, Power Thinking
is your ability to harness the best of how the mind functions
and use it to consciously direct the course of your life.
Beyond
the Brain
Most
of us think of mind as synonymous with the brain. In truth, the
mind as defined here includes much more. Candace Pert, one of
the top researchers in the field of psychoneuroimmunology (the
study of the mind-body connection as it relates to wellness and
illness) says that the mind is not in the brain, it
exists in every cell of our body!
From
this perspective, mind includes the physical body, emotions, creativity,
intuition, and to extrapolate further, I include the ability to
access the Greater Mind…the minds of others, and a Higher Mind
or energy that is everywhere-present.
When
Jeff Bezos was inspired to create Amazon, it wasn't just his left
brain, reason and logic at play. He was excited, inspired, curious
and creative. He was open, intuitive and connected with others,
using all aspects of his mind, as well as the minds of others,
to create the outcome he did.
Limits
of Everyday Thought
In normal, everyday thinking, we function largely as creatures
of habit, operating on automatic pilot, rather unconsciously going
about our business without much highly tuned awareness. If we
do access our feelings, it is often from a reactive place, using
unconscious, knee-jerk responses to whatever is happening.
This
automatic process, together with left brain thinking…reason, logic
and linear thinking, with the scientific method
considered the highest form of thought…makes up our cultural view
of thought.
In
this view, most emotions are considered irrational, not to be
trusted and certainly to be kept out of any decision making process.
Intuition is looked upon with skepticism, listening to our bodies
isn't considered, and talking about a Higher kind of guidance
is politically incorrect in most circles. Even creativity is classically
shunned by the powers that be. Stories are legend about ideas
presented to captains of industry that were laughed out of the
board room at the time, only to become the wave of the future,
led by those who saw the vision early.
Power
Thinking Components
Power
Thinking goes beyond the left brain. It includes the wisdom of
the body… honoring the sensations we feel, knowing they hold messages
in the language of kinesthetics. It includes our emotions…warning
flags and direction signals that tell us something is very right,
or very wrong. It includes intuition… inklings and flashes-of-knowing
that transcend the brain, whispering in a language only the highly
attuned can hear. It includes creativity…the ability to ask "what
if…?" and finish the sentence with exciting possibility. And
it includes the Greater Mind…whether a Higher Power or the collective
wisdom and strength of others, this is synergy, the ability
to multiply our mind power by both letting go and connecting.
Why
Power Thinking?
Normal thinking is reactive. It asks What if on the negative
end of the continuum and answers from fear, with an eye to defend,
protect and prevent loss, looking at what isn't desired. It bases
its conclusions on the past.
Power
Thinking is proactive. It focuses on possibility, on understanding
and on creation. It asks What if and answers to the positive
side of the continuum, based on possibility and passion, considering
what is desired. It bases its conclusions with an eye to the future.
The
mind is like a homing device: whatever we focus upon is where
it leads us. The simple truth is that focusing on fear and the
negative will lead us there. Focusing on love and the positive
will guide us likewise.
Read the conclusion of this article in the Fall issue of Affirming
Spirit Newsletter to be released on September 1, 2004.
Copyright,
2004, Joy Nordquist. All rights reserved. Joy Nordquist, MA, is
a Professional Development Coach who works with career seekers
who want work they love so much it feels like play, and with independent
professionals and solopreneurs who want grow to their enterprise.
Her website is www.thejoyofsuccess.com
or she can be reached at joy@thejoyofsuccess.com
