7 Rules of Mental Conditioning

Today I completed my first 100 length swim in training for my Channel Swim challenge for next year! Now whilst 100 lengths may not get me anywhere near to the French coastline, it was certainly a significant step for me, both physically and psychologically.

 

I can remember getting to 72 lengths, which would still have been quite a significant training session, and thinking to myself that would be enough. No one would have said anything if I had stopped at that point. In fact, they probably would have applauded me for getting so far.

 

You see, other people can never set standards high enough for you… this is a task that only you can be responsible for. You role in life should be to constantly raise the bar for yourself, to set your sights higher each day, and then to take action in pursuit of your goals.

 

However, every such decision you make fortifies your muscles of persistence and will, making you stronger and better equipped to take on such challenges in the future. Having studied human physiology for so long, I can see so many crossovers between the body and the mind. We often take it for granted that our body needs conditioning to make a difference, and we understand that one trip to the gym or to the pool is not going to undo the years of abuse it has received.

 

Well exactly the same is required to train your mind. Although it clearly isn’t a muscle, you need to treat mental conditioning the same as you would as preparing to compete in the Olympics. Here is a list of the top 7 factors to consider when doing mental training.

 

1 – Get a coach. All top athletes have someone to guide and direct their training, someone who can push them harder in tough times and to give them perspective when necessary. A good life coach is essential to success in mental conditioning.

2 – Join a Club. Rarely do athletes train alone. Even athletes who train for individual events tend to join forces with like-minded others to help push and encourage one another, and to add a healthy element of competition. Your close network will determine a large amount of your individual success.

3 – Strengthening Work. You need to be challenging yourself every day to allow yourself to rise up. Spend time learning from the greats, read the classic self help and personal development books that have stood the test of time. Learn these in depth, pushing yourself hard to extract every last possible learning like you would to get one more repetition when lifting weights.

4 – Flexibility. Being agile allows you to compete in so many different areas of life, likewise with mental flexibility. The Law of Requisite Variety tells us that the person with the greatest degree of flexibility in any given situation will control that situation. Develop mental flexibility by delving into all sorts of subjects; science and religion, fiction and fact.

5 – Nutrition and Fuel. The computing acronym GIGO (garbage in garbage out) applies to the mind and body as well as to your laptop. Nourish your mind rather than feeding it mental candy to ensure that it supports you along your journey. Make sure you are filling it with material.

6 – Rest and Recovery. Our minds can easily get stuck in a rut, and rather than stopping altogether, a change is just as good. Find ways to access the other areas of your mind, particularly the creative and artistic faculties. This will help make you a more rounded person and avoid the tendency to burn out.

7 – Celebrate Victories. Remember to recognise your successes along the way. Just like an athlete would celebrate each individual victory on their way to the Olympics, whilst simultaneously keeping one eye on the greater goal. Enjoy the journey!

When One Door Closes… The 3 steps to surviving change!

I guess you would be expecting me to say that you should always remain positive and look for the silver lining in any cloud. However, you know as well as I do that in any such situation, emotions can become all encompassing. Even the perpetrator’s face in your mind can bring about feelings of anxiety and aggression in many cases. I know I have been in that position more than a few times!

 

And at the same time, we all know that given time, we will surely look back and laugh at such events in our life. It is as if time is able to give us the perspective we need to be able to see the positives that will inevitably come, but which are hidden from us in our enraged state.

 

Ironically, it is this vision that you need in order to make the improvements happen. Spending the weekend with Bob Proctor last weekend reminded me of the importance of holding a clear and vivid image of my goals in my mind to allow my vibrations to come into harmony with the universe to allow it to be attracted to me.

 

Prefer the NLP version? You need to focus your RAS (Reticular Activating System) on something positive so that you notice more of that around you: opportunities, situations, people and events. Ever wonder why they say that “bad things happen in three’s“? Well it’s because when one such thing happens, you then focus your mind to look for another two similar situations that can go wrong. And when they do, you reinforce that belief, and then carry on as normal because bad things only happen in three’s, therefore making any other bad event impossible (at least in your imagination)!

 

Thank goodness the phrase isn’t “bad things happen in seventeen’s“!

 

So ok, maybe I am going to give the think positive speech, but that is only because it is so important! And remember, it isn’t events that control you, its how you respond to such events that counts. I remember a quote from Jim Rohn that states:

 

“The same wind blows on us all; the wind of change, of adversity, of opportunity. Yet it is not the wind that determines our direction, but the set of our sail!”

 

In any challenge, you have to learn how to set your sail. When done effectively, you can even sail into the wind (now I am no sailor, but I have heard it is possible. The word ‘tacking’ pops into my mind). And believe me, there are a lot of challenges out there at the moment, not least financial.

 

However, challenges can often truly turn into blessings! Take for example the case of someone who recently lost their biggest client; a piece of work that almost completely made up this person’s entire income. This client, going through financial challenges themselves, decided that cutbacks were to be made, and decided to downsize in certain departments… including the one this guy worked in!

 

Initial response? Well, like anyone else, the immediate thought was of covering basic living expenses and keeping a roof overhead… but did you ever notice that when you focus on such things that you rarely feel motivated to reach for your true potential?

 

Fortunately, this guy had a good coach who helped point out that the old situation was far from perfect, and that this new situation was the perfect opportunity to get back in touch with what inspired him; to get creative and commit to focus on his passion to make a difference! Now that is inspiring!

 

But again, when one door opens… another slams firmly in your face! Something that seemed so positive and which had inspired a lot of this person’s action was suddenly snatched away. Had all that work been for nothing? That depends on the interpretation of that event! But because momentum had been created by taking action in the direction, it would take more than a hiccup like that to knock him off track!

 

The outcome of this situation? Well, after just a few weeks following the “disappointment“, this guy has raised the standard of his life dramatically! He has almost doubled his income following the attraction of new clients and a couple of new Multiple Streams of Income, opportunities which would certainly have been overlooked in his old position. He has found new ways to contribute to even more people’s lives, and is attracting all of the people he needs into his life, even bumping into them on the street (literally!). And it seems, after the initial resistance, that when one door opens… two more open! (Can you guess who this might be?)

 

So the lesson today is to welcome challenge and change! Sometimes the decision to change is made for you… other times you will commit yourself. Either way, change is an opportunity for fuller expression; for you to realise what is truly important and for you to go after it in full effect. Once momentum from your newly invigorated actions reaches a certain point, you will certainly begin to attract what you need into your life. The important thing is to commit to doing what you are passionate about and what can make a difference to others too!

 

So the three steps to surviving change are:

 

1 – Be prepared for change. Ensure that whatever you are doing right now that you are emotionally, financially, physically and intellectually prepared for whatever could happen.

2 – When change happens, adjust your perspective to see the opportunity rather than the adversity, and welcome it with excitement and dreams of possibility.

3 – Commit to follow your dreams and live the life you are designed for. Use your strengths and talents to change the world and the lives of others around you.

 

Follow these steps, and success in the face of change is assured!

Top 10 ways to Gain Clarity!

Sometimes, we just need to get ourselves out of the way of our own greatness.

 

I think Wayne Dyer puts it brilliantly when he reminds us that for the first 9 months of our existence we hand our destiny over to the creator who handles everything perfectly. We are then born and thinking we know better, we decide to take back control and gradually we become more disconnected from our true power.

 

To gain clarity in our lives and get closer to our natural self, it is vital that we spend time reconnecting to our inner being, call it your spirit, unconscious, essence or any other such term. Below are 10 top ideas for how to achieve that!

 

Meditate - There are many different ways to meditate, the aim of which is to help silence the inner voices and allow you to experience true stillness and calm. Whether you attend a Buddhist centre or a local community centre, you can easily find a course in your locality. Alternatively, just find somewhere quiet, sit comfortably and focus on your breathing, trying to slow it down and make it into one continuous movement rather than an in-out action. Find a technique that suits you.

Have a clear out - De-clutter your living space to allow new energy to flow and bring new energy into your life. Get rid of newspapers and magazines, do the washing up and wash and put away your clothes. Getting the vacuum out, cleaning the windows and tidying the shelves will all be reflected with an internal clarity. Also, what’s in your wardrobe? Instead of throwing that stuff out, give your old clothes to a charity shop, and be honest… if you haven’t worn it in 6 to 9 months you probably won’t wear it again… be ruthless and make space in your life!

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