Mind What Matters

Mind Over Matter

You’ve heard the phrase “mind over matter.” You’ve probably seen it printed on a T-shirt—maybe you own that T-shirt. But do you own the mindset? If you own that belief system then you understand exactly what it takes to achieve your dreams. Do you OWN the belief system that says, “I AM STRONGER than anything that gets thrown my way”? Do you believe that even if the belief comes from WITHIN? It can actually be harder to deal with obstacles within yourself than those that come from outside. The obstacles that come from inside are personal and often subconscious. But as much POWER as you have over your external life (and it’s a LOT), you have even MORE power over your inner life.

You can’t treat inner obstacles like outer ones, though. If you’re having a bad day, it’s not the same as if there were construction on your street and you had to take a detour. You can’t go AROUND a problem that’s WITHIN you and still end up where you want to be. Inner beliefs take work, and since these issues can be subconscious, it might take time to figure out the root belief. And you have to figure out that belief. That’s the only way to experience success.

Inside Out

These inner obstacles are tricky! They are often tied up with emotions. That’s why emotional intelligence is going to be your BIGGEST asset in business AND in life. It works in ALL situations…and emotional dysfunction can RUIN any situation. In order to put mind over matter (or emotions), you have to MIND what MATTERS. You need to get to know yourself and determine your values, because the way we live, either alighned or misaligned is reflected in whether we feel good or bad. A lot of people don’t think about this on a regular basis, which is CRAZY, because your values are what drive everything you do, every day. They tell you whether to be in a good or bad mood, how much effort to put into your projects, even how long to savor a bite of your lunch. So battle inner turmoil with understanding your values.

It helps to write your values out in a list. If you don’t know what they look like, here are some examples. One of your values could be family, meaning that your relationships with the people in your family are important to your wellbeing. Other values include novelty, faith, curiosity, security, humor, learning, or experience. Search for a word that resonates with you. Think about how you spend your time and energy and what makes you feel good, and see if you find a pattern. Examining your patterns and creating new habits of emotional intelligence is just ONE set of skills we talk about in “Limitless.” 

Emotional Energy

Living a limitless life starts with controlling where you direct your energy. Emotions are a major form of energy. So direct them toward something that’s REALLY important to you.

Once you know where your values lie, you can examine the things that make you feel bad. One of two truths usually arises. 1) You realize that the thing that made you upset really wasn’t that important because your real values lie elsewhere. 2) Your emotions give you an opportunity to learn about yourself, develop your strength, and re-commit to the value that was threatened. Either way, you can USE your emotions to your own advantage.

Elevate your mind over your emotions in a way that goes beyond just “ignoring pain”—like “mind over matter” in a workout. Doing so is actually quite like a workout, because it takes practice, patience, hard work, and persistence. The more you practice good emotional intelligence, focus on positive thoughts, turn around beliefs that don’t serve you, the stronger you get.

And that strength enables you to do what REALLY matters.