Creating The Success Mindset
The downturn in the economy has led many to a mindset of fear and scarcity. It is difficult for entrepreneurs and professionals to succeed if they cannot picture or perceive that success. As top level athletes will confirm, along with all of their preparation and training, they visualize their successes prior to competing. Dr. Jim Gottfurcht, PhD, one creator of “The Psychology of Money,” is one of the pioneers in studying how individuals think about money, states that at any moment people experience one of two states of mind: Prosperity Thinking or Poverty Thinking. Prosperity Thinking is when one aligns his or her beliefs, expectations and feelings with abundance, optimism and confidence. Poverty Thinking is limited and rooted in fear and mistrust. According to Dr. Gottfurcht, by increasing Prosperity Thinking and decreasing Poverty Thinking, one can become more confident, optimistic, and successful.
It makes sense that focusing on poverty and scarcity closes down possibilities and opportunities. It can also predispose both entrepreneurs and businesses to fail. Particularly during this time of recession, unemployment and overall gloom and doom, it’s more important than ever to shift a personal and business mindset from one of scarcity to one of success.
In her book Excuse Me, Your Life is Waiting, Lynn Grabhorn discusses the following four steps:
- Identify what you don’t want.
- From that, identify what you do want.
- Get into the place of feeling the emotions of what you do want.
- Be open to accepting what the Universe sends you in response
That is not the standard nuts-and-bolts business advice, but we don’t seem to be in standard nuts-and-bolts time. Developing this mindset is a basic component of Transformational Marketing. Yes it’s important to focus on the business basics. Positive thinking is not a substitute for basic planning, marketing, but it does need to be part of the equation. And here we’re not really dealing with positive thinking, but with seeing and feeling success in our life. There is a reason that professional athletes visualize hitting a basket, sinking a putt, or hitting a homerun, they are aligning their thoughts and beliefs with their actions. The combination can be formidable. It is the secret to success in business and in life.
