After you have read this article, you will be equipped with a different outlook that will spur growth instead of stagnation.
Mindsets are lenses that help you create meaning in your life.
They influence the actions you take to reach your purpose.
They indicate how you react through hardships and failures.
-> Mindsets are determinant factors for success.
They separate those that make it from those that don’t.
Margaret Thatcher understood it well.
“Watch your thoughts, for they become words.
Watch your words, for they become actions.
Watch your actions, for they become habits.
Watch your habits, for they become your character.
And watch your character, for it becomes your destiny.
What we think, we become.”
Some mindsets hinder your success. Other mindsets catapult your growth and help you succeed.
It is no wonder that so many books have been written on the “mental game” of CEOs, athletes, or scientists.
This article compiled seven mindset shifts to help you achieve explosive growth.
Learn to see the world through these lenses, and watch what happens to your life.
#1: Don’t Consume — > Produce
There are two types of people in the world: those that consume what is produced, and those that produce what is consumed.
The system in which we live (capitalism) is based on the following equation:
What you can consume = what you produce.
The more you want to consume (yachts, fast cars, mansions), the more you will have to produce.
And the more you produce, the more you will be able to consume.
Produce a lot -> consume a lot.
Produce little -> consume little.
Consumption can’t be enabled without initial production. After all, if nothing is produced, nothing can be consumed.
When you shift your mindset towards production and away from consumption, you will see opportunities to create and add value to society which will transform into money.
Acting on these opportunities will attract more people and opportunities into your life.
Don’t be mistaken. The world we live in is inherently “valuecratic”.
The masses revolve around people (Rihanna), brands (Nike), services (Amazon), experiences (Disney amusement parks), and products (the Switch) that solve problems and give customers satisfaction.
Once you start creating value, the universe gives you abundance in return.
It’s fair.
And it’s the only way it works.
#2: Don’t Stop —> Keep on Moving Forward
There is no such thing as stagnation. You whether evolve and get better or regress and get worse.
This explains why musicians, artists, writers, and athletes must train and practice every day or they lose their skills and abilities.
When we’re not moving forward, we’re moving backward.
“But what if I move in a bad direction?”
Research has shown that companies that moved fast, made mistakes, and corrected their course were much likely to survive than companies that carefully weighted their decisions and moved slower.
Furthermore, you can’t know whether a path is right for you or not until you try it out.
When you move fast, you can adjust fast if needed.
So don’t stagnate. Don’t stop. Stagnation is regression.
Always keep on moving forward.
#3: Don’t Do What You Love — > Do What They Love
What we get out of life is only a reflection of what we give to others.
Look around you. What do you see?
The richest people sell what consumers want most. They don’t sell what they want to sell most.
The most popular comedians tell what their audience wants to hear. They don’t tell what they want to tell.
The most popular singers sing what their fans want to listen to. They don’t sing what they want to sing.
When you do what others love, you create value for them and they give you money in return.
This enables you to create abundance into your life and in turn, consume what you wish to consume.
#4: Don’t Avoid Problems —> Solve Them
The cause of any event in human society is a problem.
Hunger is a problem. Food is the solution.
Thirst is a problem. Drinks are the solution.
Boredom is a problem. Entertainment is the solution.
Not enough time is a problem. Fast travel is a solution.
Our entire economy is based on problems. Solve these problems, and you will be rewarded.
The only way to solve problems is to learn how to solve them.
When you run towards problems, you train yourself to find solutions.
When you run away from problems, you never learn to fix them.
He who fixes problems is valuable.
He who does not know how to fix problems has no value to society.
Don’t avoid problems. Look for them. Solve them.
And get yourself paid to do so.
#5: Don’t Spend —> Invest
What is spent is gone forever. What is invested will grow and pay back.
While everyone is now aware of this principle, few realize it does not only apply to money.
Time, food, books, and people you spend time with are also sorts of investments likely to yield positive (or negative) returns in the future.
To find out whether the action you are undertaking is an expenditure or an investment, ask yourself this question:
- Is what I am spending time or money on likely to bring a positive return in the future?
For example, is spending time playing video games likely to improve your life in the future?
No.
Is reading a book on how to build companies likely to improve your life in the future?
Yes.
It’s that simple.
When you start investing all of your time (through learning and practicing new skills) and all of your money (in stocks, crypto, or books, courses, and workshops), you increase your chances to get a return on investment at some point in the future.
The more you invest, the more you earn. The more you earn, and the more you are able to invest.
Like a snowball, that is the power of compound investing.
#6: Don’t Ressasse the Past —> Build the Future
Humans are not good at multi-tasking. This has been highlighted over and over again by authors and scientists. When we focus on one point, we lose track of our surroundings.
Focus is a zero-sum game. When you focus on your finances, your social life suffers. When you focus on your social life, your finances suffer.
By the same token, when you focus on the past, you don’t focus on the future. It’s a problem. It’s a problem because the past does not matter. It’s gone. It’s not coming back. And it won’t change. The past is irrelevant.
The present and the future are all that matter. He who does not build his future, cannot have control over it.
In his best-seller Zero to One, Peter Thiel explains that the future is not determined. The future is built, and its nature depends on the vision we have of it, and our willingness to fulfill it.
In an appearance at the South by Southwest festival, Thiel doubled down during his conference entitled “you are not a lottery ticket”.
In his book Personality Isn’t Permanent, Benjamin Hardy explains that we don’t become who we are.
We become who we want to become when we focus on the future goals we want to achieve.
So forget about the past. It doesn’t matter. It’s irrelevant. Focus on the future.
Define your purpose. Start working towards its realization.
#7: Don’t Run Away From the Pain —> Embrace It
Life is fair. The more “healthy” pain you endure, the greater the results you harvest.
Learning is painful because learning is change.
When something changes in your life, your brain creates new connections between neurons to interpret the change. This process consumes a lot of energy. As a result, it is painful. The more pain you endure, the faster you and your life will change.
Virtually any other activity that yields positive change goes by that principle.
- Learning a new language or skills
- Working out
- Going on a diet
- Trying to make new friends
- Going out of your comfort zone
- etc…
When you embrace the pain, when you surrender, you make the process easier on yourself. That suffering frees explosive growth and you improve using all the potential that you have.
Don’t run away from the pain. Run towards it. This is the most direct path towards abundance.
Conclusion
#1 helps you evolve from a world of scarcity to a world of abundance.
#2 ensures you keep on learning and get better, even in the toughest moments.
#3 teaches you how to be a valuable person.
#4 is the foundation of a successful business.
#5 helps you compound your assets so that you can enjoy wealth later on.
#6 is meant to keep you focused on your goals.
#7 is the law that rules over how fast you will succeed.
Apply these mindsets and none of your goals will be out of reach.
Good luck!
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