That was the title of a thread someone started on a forum I belong to.
He pointed out that “laziness, combined with intelligent thought, is the secret to success.” So why, he asked, don’t more people take the “lazy” approach of more thinking and less doing?
The approach he outlined did make sense.
EXCEPT for one glaringly-large missing piece.
This: Thinking itself is hard work.
As Henry Ford observed, “Thinking is the hardest work there is, which is probably the reason why so few engage in it.”
You’d *think* that the easiest thing to change would be do your thinking. It’s not like building muscle or losing fat.
It’s just… a thought. Right?
But no. It’s the hardest.
To change your thinking:
1. You need to accept that you are where you are because of the way you’ve been thinking to date. You need to have acute awareness that your current situation (the one you want to change) was caused by the way you were thinking about it. And not by your spouse. Your parents. The government. Or whatever.
Yeah – you need to accept responsibility for where you are.
Gosh, it’s so much easier to blame others. No wonder few people ever get past step 1.
But even if you do, there’s still a long journey.
2. You need to become exposed to a better way of thinking. A way that will help you get what you want.
Even harder: If you lack a mentor and quality peers, you’ll need to figure out that better way yourself.
You also need the life experience and perspective and wisdom to recognize that this new way of thinking really is superior to what you’ve got now.
Made it this far?
Nice!
3. You need to go out on a limb and TEST that way of thinking. Live according to its dictates.
This will be scary at first because there is always doubt and fear when you do something that veers from the way you’ve always done things, as a result of “trying on” a new way of thinking.
4. You won’t immediately succeed. So you need to keep trying and adapting, with the faith that this new way of thinking will get you what you want – even though much of the evidence in front of you (all of the evidence in front of you?) appears to be showing the opposite.
5. Eventually, you’ll experience success from your new way of thinking. And only then do you really “know” your new way of thinking. Only after you’ve LIVED it.
Even then, you are susceptible to being dragged back into your old ways of thinking, so you need to press forward until the new way becomes second nature.
And after all that? You’ll reach a new plateau.
To climb further you’ll again need to adjust your thinking. And repeat these steps all over again.
For most people, this is terrifying. They’re anxious to ARRIVE already. Alas, they pursue a chimera. And so they stay “comfortably numb.”
But if you have that fire inside, that Inner Knowing which tells you you’re here for more, this is EXCITING.
This is LIFE. This is LIVING because what else, really, is life all about?
Now, if you don’t yet have a steady, consistent, predictable flow of your ideal clients, then start with step 1. Accept that you are where you are because of how you think about what’s involved in attracting a steady flow of your ideal clients.
Then go to step 2. The fastest way to change your thinking – and your results – is through conversations with people who already have the result you want.
That’s why the best have mentors and coaches. So they can absorb better ways of thinking.
If you’ve been looking for the right coach and the right peer group to guide you on this journey, then go here to request a free 15 Minute Chat with me.
Dov Gordon
