Train your Brain

This is a post about how we can train our brain to directly impact our likelihood of success (5 minute read)!

We often don’t realize how important the words we choose to use are.  More specifically, when we fill our lives with ambition and goals, we must choose words that are conducive to accomplishing what we set out to achieve.  We must train our brains to think positively and use words that are motivating and encouraging.  Contrary to popular belief, self-confidence is built on a foundation of what we tell ourselves, not the validation we receive from others.  Way before the outside world has the opportunity to corrupt our confidence in ourselves, we have the ability to strengthen our foundation by choosing the words we use more carefully.

Telling yourself “I will” versus “I’ll try” or “I wish I could” can be the difference between two drastically different results.  It may sounds cliche – but it works.  Effort is everything but choosing the phrase “I will” can exponentially boost your confidence in your ability to accomplish whatever you are after.  To those of you that scoff at the idea of positive reinforcement through self-talk, I would suggest you do some research on neuroplasticity.  In the simplest definition, neuroplasticity is the ability to shape our minds through learning.  We can actually train our brains to think a specific way through repetition and persistence.  As complex of an organism as our brains are, training them really isn’t that hard – it can be as simple as repeatedly choosing the right words whcih trains oru brains to truly believe what we tell ourselves…

Some of you are likely still not convinced of the power of words so let me explain what it’s done for me in my life. 

Positive reinforcement got me through basic training.  Drill Sergeants do everything in their power to break you down as an individual by getting you to question your abilities through absolutely brutal tactics. They make quitting so easy that without the ability to contradict what they’re telling you with positive reinforcement, you don’t stand a chance.  They told me I would never make it.  They told me I couldn’t do anything right.  They told me that me being there was only holding my fellow soldiers back.  Of course, none of it was true, but they were so convincing that it made it hard to not believe them – but I replayed another of my father’s mantra’s in my head; you can do anything you set your mind to.

The trick was learning how to truly set my mind to something.

This is when the power of words came into play…I began contradicting every word the Drill Sergeants screamed in my ear by telling myself the exact opposite.  If they told me I couldn’t do something, I told myself I could.  If they said I wasn’t worth S***, I convinced myself that I was and when they told me that my fellow soldiers would be better off if I quit, I convinced myself that those soldiers wouldn’t make it without me.

Believe it or not, it worked.  This was the first time I started to truly believe my father’s mantra.  He was right.  Growing up, I was the only thing that stood in my way of accomplishing the goals I had set for myself because I never truly believed in my ability to accomplish them. 

The more I told myself I could do something the more confident I became.  I felt invincible but I had to train my brain to think that way. 

Here are the facts; life is full of challenges and very rarely does life go according to plan.  There will always be people who try to hold you back from accomplishing the goals you’ve set for yourself.  It’s easier to convince yourself that you can’t do something than it is to convince yourself you can.  Some people will never truly realize how powerful the words we use in our lives are, but for those of you that do, no obstacle is too big to overcome and there is no goal that is out of reach.  You are capable of what you tell yourself you are and the difference between “I will” and “I’ll try” could be the difference between success and failure.

By: Timothy A. Natale

Check out my second book, Secrets from Strangers, which shares 18 life changing “secrets” I learned for how to overcome obstacles, live a life of passion and purpose and to find more happiness in the way you live!

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