Your Brain Will Not Let You Succeed

Have you ever found yourself talking to yourself or getting this sudden thought in your mind - "Why am I unsuccessful?" OR "Why can't I succeed?" OR "Why is that XYZ person better than me?" I bet you have. And I also bet, for most of you, the answer was as immediate as the question - "Because I can't do it." OR "Because I am not made for it" OR "Because I don't have those qualities/traits/resources required to be successful." Have you been there?

Let me tell you something that might surprise you, amuse you or even make you despise me. What I want to tell you is this:

"Your Brain Will Not Let You Succeed".

Do I have your eyebrows raised? Or did I just hear someone say, "Err, What?" No problem. You want to know what I mean, which is why you are reading this now, so read on...

Without doubt, the human brain is the most precious "asset" that one can have in his/her life. It's your brain that makes you what you are today and determines what you will be tomorrow. So, if there is one thing that is contributing to your success with its "heart, mind and soul", it is your brain. But it is that very brain that will stop you from actually succeeding. How and why? I am just going to explain that. But before that, let me ask a simple question that has two choices. Choose the one you like but stick to the one that comes to your mind the first time you read the question. Let it be intuitive. OK? Here is the question:

Question:
What do you do as soon as the alarm clock goes off in the morning:

[A] Press the Snooze button on the alarm so that it rings again after 5 minutes.
[B] Get up immediately and do your daily chores after stopping the alarm.

What was your answer? What flashed in your mind? If I am not wrong, you chose the first option. Right? Probably, you do that everyday. Why did you choose the first option and not the second though the second is more preferable.

"YOUR BRAIN ALWAYS CHOOSES THE EASY WAY OUT"

Whenever you are told to wake up or you are given some work to do, the brain has two options: Either to do the work or not to do the work. And the brain is "trained inherently" to choose the option which takes the least amount of effort on its part to execute - The Easy Way Out. So, it chooses not to do the work. This is why you would press the Snooze button in the morning or put off your work for the next day. In whatever you do, the brain chooses the easy way out for everything. It always try to press the "Snooze" button. It tries to stop you from doing anything. Whenever it is faced by a challenge, it says - "Snooze". Get the idea? The reason why you stop yourself from doing hard work, the reason why people make excuses for almost anything (except when they are genuine), the reason why people do not take action is because:

"The brain LOVES the Snooze button!"

What can you do about it? Can you stop the brain from pressing the Snooze button? Can you stop it from "snoozing your success"? Yes, you can. For this, you have to develop in yourself a trait called Determination. Determination here means not the 'ideal of determination' that we hear since our school days - No. Determination means not letting your brain press that "Snooze" button when it has to do a task. It means that you press your brain to work, to complete the job or anything that it has been 'asked' to. Stop it from snoozing your success because if it is able to lure you into pressing the Snooze button on work/goals/aims/anything, your brain won't let you succeed. Decide that you will do everything immediately, as soon as it comes.

And as I always say - Practice. Practice. Practice. un-Snooze your brain now!

Did you know?: I was going to press the Snooze button on this article and post it tomorrow, but I didn't let my brain do that.

Until next time then,
Get, Set, Live!

They Taught Us the Wrong Thing!

The problem with most people is that they are not ready to take action. They are not ready to make a move. Goal setting is only one-half of the work. What is important is achieving them and I don't need to tell you that achieving goals requires hard work. It requires that you stay motivated constantly until you have achieved your goals. But, what really happens is often the opposite. While most people do not set any goals to begin, the few who do just sit there and think to themselves that the goals will be achieved automatically - Absolutely Wrong! You can't imagine crops growing in the fields without the farmer working hard, can you? You can't imagine machines in the factory working automatically without the labor working hard with it, can you? No, you can't. It is very necessary to take action. But why don't people take action when it seems so logical? Why is it that people hold back from doing work for their OWN goals that THEY set for THEMSELVES?

Let me tell you:

When you were a kid, I am sure you must have been taught what everyone has been taught by your teachers, parents, family etc. That one lesson that you learnt in your childhood is widely responsible why people don't take action in life and that lesson is "We MUST BE SATISFIED with what we HAVE". Somehow, we've been forced to believe that being satisfied with what we have is not only good, but rather a NECESSITY, a MUST. Absolutely Wrong, yet again. Before I go into explaining why I believe satisfaction is bad, let us try to understand what satisfaction is and why it is considered GOOD in the first place.

Let us not go by the dictionary definition of satisfaction. In layman's terms - "Satisfaction is a FEELING and STATE OF MIND where one BELIEVES that what he/she has (money, number of houses, cars, abilities, fame - absolutely anything) is ENOUGH and he/she doesn't NEED any MORE OF IT". Let's analyze this definition. The first thing that you will notice about satisfaction is that it is a STATE OF MIND and a FEELING. Secondly, satisfaction is a BELIEF (that one has enough of whatever he/she has). Thirdly, it is a condition where you feel that you "DON'T NEED ANYMORE" of a thing. These three "aspects" of satisfaction are the reasons why it has been deemed as being good and more importantly, why I believe it is bad. Why is satisfaction considered good? Just why? It is correct that we've been TAUGHT so but why is it any good? Why should we be satisfied? The reason that satisfaction is good is because it leads to MENTAL PEACE. When you are always in a state where you are craving for something, your mind is constantly, whether you know it or not, trying to find ways and means to get that thing. What this leads to is a state of disturbance for your mind and draws out the energy (yes, thinking takes a LOT of energy) that you have in store. Hence, in turn, you are constantly becoming physically weak and mentally disturbed (not in the negative sense). However, when satisfaction comes into the picture, your mind KNOWS that you don't NEED or WANT that thing ANYMORE because:

1. You already have enough of it

OR

2. You are happy without it

Thus, there is no craving and hence, no mental exercise in devising ways to get it. Everything is fine till now. The problem begins when people like you and me become satisfied with WHATEVER we have. Take the example of a student in class who gets only 60% marks. He is expected by his parents and teachers to increase that percentage, right? But what would happen if he becomes SATISFIED with that 60%? Simple. He will loose the MOTIVATION required to STUDY HARDER and achieve HIGHER MARKS. Are you with me here?

So it comes down to this: "SATISFACTION KILLS MOTIVATION TO WORK MORE/HARDER/BETTER" And this is why I believe that SATISFACTION IS BAD. Remember one thing, when you are satisfied, it does not mean that you don't need something in reality, no. When you are satisfied you BELIEVE that you don't need something irrespective of the fact that you need it or not in reality. Get it?

What is the way out then? If we are not satisfied, we don't get MENTAL PEACE. If we are satisfied, we loose the MOTIVATION. What should we do? The answer lies in the very definition of satisfaction. We saw above that satisfaction is a feeling AND a state of mind. What does this mean? It means that while satisfaction can be felt as a 'feeling' (like happiness, sadness, anger etc.), it can take control of the mind such that the whole mind reaches a STATE OF SATISFACTION. Take anger as an example. You might feel angry when you are scolded at your work place. That is a FEELING. If you let that feeling 'get to your head', you'll transform yourself into a person whose state of mind is "ANGRY" and you will be angry at all times - you will scream at your family, shout at your friends, refuse to cooperate with your colleagues etc. Get the idea? So what is required is that you should be satisfied BUT that should only be a FEELING. You should feel good that you achieved something (a satisfying feeling) but be ready to work harder to achieve more (motivation intact). This way you will get best of both worlds – mental peace and satisfaction – at the same time. Of course, this requires practice, so why not start right now?

Until next time then,
Get, Set, Live!

Goals and How They Matter?

Goal setting is a topic that has been spoken and written about since time unknown in the history of motivational talk. Ask any successful businessman or a motivation "guru", how goals are important and I bet they can go on and on telling you why for hours together. Even after this, most people do not have any aim in life. When I say "any", I mean that they linger around in the world aimlessly, without anything meaningful to do. They go on doing what they do everyday without thinking why they are doing it. This is mostly unconscious, but it's the way most people are and this is what seperates the successful from the unsuccessful. The majority of your success and happiness in life depends on what your goals are and what you do to achieve them. Though there are many ways to motivate yourself, your biggest motivator should be your goals. This is because goals and aims help keep you on track and moving in the right direction. They are something like standards against which you compare your actual performance and try to mend your deviations from the "right track".

So, the question arises: "How to set Goals?" Good question. Let me answer that here:

If you ask me, personally, I don't like writing down my goals (I hate writing anything for that matter, lol!). Though different people are 'programmed' differently, it is important to know that goals are something you must have very clearly stated and registered in your MIND. It doesn't matter if you note it down or not, if it is there in your mind and it stays there till it is achieved, you are sure to make it through whatever obstacles you face in achieving them. However, before you set any goals, you should know what are the types of goals.

In terms of time, there maybe two type of goals: Short-term and Long-term. There is no set time which makes a goal short-term or long-term. It depends on how you percieve it. For example, while for some, a goal that needs to be achieved in, say, 1 day is short-term, for some other person, it maybe short-term if it is to be achieved in a month. Get the idea? You have to figure out for yourself what you think is your short-term goal and what you think is a long term goal for you. The trick here is to make one main or central long-term goal (or 2-3 long-term goals) and then make numerous short-term goals that ultimately contribute to achieving the long-term goal that you set initially. Thus, short-term goals would form your "road-to-success" while success is your long-term goal.

One thing that people often confuse for being a goal is "means". What is "means"? Means is a mean to achieve a goal. Not sure what that means? Let me explain. Given that placements from MBA institutes has increased two-fold due to a surge in the requirement of managers by companies, many students - engineering and commerce - state their goal as: "I want to do an M.B.A." Wrong, absolutely wrong! That is NOT a GOAL. A goal is final. There doesn't have to be anything after the goal. If you do an M.B.A., you'll not just sit there with your degree, will you? You will try to find work in a good and reputed company that offers you a handsome salary and an attractive package. So, your actual goal or aim here is to lead a good life in which you have no problem of money. Right? Doing an M.B.A. is but a means of getting that kind of a life. Are you with me here? You have to set a goal that is "ultimate", that has nothing after it. If you achieve that goal, you are done away with it - no more strings attached to it. Getting me?

Goals should be clear. Crystal clear. As you must have guessed, your goals are reflective of your inner self. Thus, you have to know your inner-self before you can set some goals for yourself. If I ask you right now - "How do you see yourself 10-15 years from now?" (and no, 'Married' is NOT an answer and NOT a GOAL for heaven's sake!). "What car do you own/drive?" "What kind of a house(s) you own/live in?", you have to know the exact answer to all of them. As I always say, you must be able to answer all these questions even if I woke you up from a deep sleep.

Ask yourself the following:
1. What will I be doing 10-15 years from now? (doing business? working from home? earning in millions?)
2. What car will I be driving? (luxury car? what company? what model?)
3. What kind of house will I have and where? (in which country? farmhouse? bungalow? more than 'n' houses?)

And please, don't make it all up. Answer yourself seriously. Remember, they are YOUR GOALS. So, YOU are ACCOUTABLE to YOURSELF to find the right answers and then work towards them.

I hope that you'll have your goals set out clearly before I post again.

Until next time then,
Get, Set, Live!

Knowing Your Inner-Self

Today's post is about knowing your inner-self:
If you ever meet me and I ask you: "Who are you?" What would be your answer? You'll answer me back with your name and surname, where you come from, what you are doing there etc. Conventional answers, right? Right. But if I meet you and I ask you: "Who are you really/acutally?" which is meant as "Who are you on the inside?" What would be your answer? Most people whom I've asked this question answer me this: "Umm, uhh, well...." You know. right? It is so common for people to react that way when someone asks them how they are as a person. The question is - Why? Well, I will be answering just that in this post.

A major problem with people today is that they don't know the person inside them. They don't know what they want to do, where they want to go, where their life is headed to and the like...I can't blame them either. The pressures of modern life combined with the busy schedules we have today doesn't leave enough time for anyone to talk to themselves.

Talk to themselves? Yes, talking to your own self. How to do this? How is it important? I'm just coming to that.

Let's take up the question that we began with - "Who are you on the inside?" Can you answer that question in a flash? Probably not. No problem. Let me ask you this question - "What is the capital of your country?" As soon as you read that question, I am sure the answer flashed in your mind right then. Why? Why did the answer flash in your mind almost instantly? I will tell you. It was because you have been asked that question before, you have been taught what the answer is and you have answered it a numerous times before. Correct? So, it all boils down to one thing: We can answer a question if we have been asked that question before and we know it's answer. What does that mean? That means that to answer our initial question: "Who are you on the inside?", you must have asked this question to yourself FIRST. You have to ask this question to yourself - "WHO AM I?" You are then to find an answer to it. The answer to that would tell you what your nature is, what your aims and goals are, where you're headed to, and if you are happy with your life overall or not.

It is very important to ask this to yourself because that will help build your confidence and change the way you look at life. However, you need some time for that. You have to spend time with yourself (you alone, no one around, maybe some light music in the background - you get the idea). My personal experience says that it IS possible to take out time for yourself. Think of it when you are lying in bed at night (or whenever you sleep). That is probably the best time to ask yourself this (and many other) question. Ask yourself the following:

1. Who am I?
2. Why am I here?
3. Am I doing what I like OR do I like what I am doing now?
4. What is my aim?
5. Where do I see myself 10 years from now?
6. Overall, am I happy with my life?
7. Can I make my life better?

Then, try to find a definite answer to each one of the above. You don't have to note it down. No. You only have to keep them ready in your mind. Your goal while asking these questions to yourself and trying to find answers to them is to have those questions and answers completely registered in your mind such that even if someone asks you even in between your sleep, you can "blurt-out" the answer. Once you've done that, you'll see a drastic change in your attitude towards life, towards your work and towards everything you do. Do not mind if you spend a sleepless night or two trying to find an answer to all those questions - just do it!

I hope you will soon discover yourself - your Inner Self. The Real You!

Until next time then,
Get, Set, Live!

Welcome and Get Ready to Live!

Hello there!

I'd like to welcome you whole heartedly to my blog - Get, Set, Live!

First of all, let me tell you what you're going to see on this blog:
This blog is all about life. You will find here some advice on living a happy life, tips on working towards your success and some techniques that will help you know your real self. You will see me talking about personal success, day-to-day happiness, building and maintaining relationships and also offering FREE advice to people right here.

I will be aggressive and sympathetic at the same time. I will give soft blows to your heart and soul while I grab your mind by its "throat" and raise it up to the level where it is supposed to be. Your mind can expect to get a good spanking if it doesn't follow my advice but complains about its problems.

Let's get going.

Get, Set, Live!