[acb-hsp] Eradicating Negative Thinking

Thu Nov 15 12:19:10 EST 2012

Peter,
This is a very powerful message.  Thanks for sharing.
Kind Regards,
Kenneth Semien, Sr.
----- Original Message ----- 
From: "peter altschul" <paltschul at centurytel.net>
To: "Acbhsp" <acb-hsp at acb.org>
Sent: Thursday, November 15, 2012 10:52 AM
Subject: [acb-hsp] Eradicating Negative Thinking


> The 20-Minute Exercise To Eradicate Negative Thinking
>   By Kaihan Krippendorff November 15, 2012
>   Belief is contagious.  It wins supporters.  It's 
> self-fulfilling.  Here's how to get there when nagging, negative 
> thoughts are holding you back.
>   After a flurry of emails in response to my blog post on 
> passion, I reached a disheartening realization: passion is 
> useless if you donbt already believe.
>   You see, what we can achieve is limited by what we believe.  
> Henry Ford knew this: "Whether you think you can or you think you 
> can't, you are right."
>   So here I was, passionately committed to become the world-class 
> business guru, best-selling author, the speaker who fills 
> stadium.  And yet there was voice telling me, "You can't do it.  
> Keep trying, trying is fun, but in the end you will fail."
>   You've probably heard that voice as well.
>   I'm making progress--my book sales are accelerating, my keynote 
> audiences are growing, and I'm sharing the stage with people like 
> Jack Welch and Robin Sharma--but in the back of my mind the voice 
> pulls the reigns: "You can't do it."
>   Great "outthinkers" seem to overcome this voice.  Their belief 
> matches their passion.  Napoleon believed he was the greatest 
> general of his time and so he was.  Steve Jobs believed his 
> people could achieve the impossible, so they did.  Richard 
> Branson believed he could win against British Airways, and so he 
> won, even though every airline that tried over the prior three 
> decades failed.
>   Belief is contagious.  It wins supporters.  It's 
> self-fulfilling.  As Harvard professor Rosebeth Moss Kanter shows 
> in her book Confidence the belief you can win creates momentum 
> which improves your chances of winning.
>   So what do you do when you don't believe?
>   Over the past four weeks, I've studies books and articles, 
> interviewed entrepreneurs and experts, then assembled it all for 
> you in a simple framework with which you can systematically 
> attack whatever belief is holding you down.  Give me 20 minutes.  
> This works.
>   Fundamentals
>   1.  Beliefs aren't real.  They are mental maps, abstractions of 
> reality, that help us predict a complex world.  My son believes 
> good batteries must be cold because I keep ours in the freezer.  
> He believes Santa Claus rides a sleigh.
>   2.  Four anchors form our beliefs (For more, read Why We 
> Believe What We Believe by Andrew Newberg and Mark Robert 
> Waldman).
>   Evidence: Something happens (e.g., gifts appear one morning and 
> my mom says they are from Santa Claus)
>   Logic: It makes sense, more specifically, it is consistent with 
> our other beliefs (e.g., gifts can't just appear out of nowhere, 
> my mom and dad were asleep...x must have been Santa)
>   Emotion: Strong emotional associations (a 3-year-old's joy at 
> getting a new choo choo) embed beliefs more indelibly
>   Social consensus: We believe more deeply if others believe too 
> (e.g., Maria and Nico and Sofia all say Santa brought them gifts 
> too)
>   3.  We reject what doesn't fit.  Once a belief is formed, we 
> explain away any inconsistent evidence.  I saw a documentary in 
> which a young child said to his friends, "Santa came to my house 
> and ate a little bit of a cookie, then he went to Jack's house 
> and ate a little bit and drank some milk, then to Maria's and ate 
> some and then...S if he went to ALL of our houses in one night, 
> it must mean--was You are sure he is about to realize Santa can't 
> be real, but instead he animates excitedly, "Santa must have been 
> really hungry!"
>   4.  Humans need consistency between beliefs, actions, and 
> words.  In Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion Robert 
> Cialdini calls this "The Rule of Consistency." This is how 
> beliefs hold us down or lift us up.  If you believe you can't, 
> you start acting and speaking like someone who can't, so you 
> actually can't.  Interestingly, the relationship also works in 
> reverse: change your action or words and you can change your 
> beliefs.
>   The Model
>   Over a 12-hour flight home from Paraguay, I assembled these 
> principles into a model we can use to deconstruct and replace any 
> belief that holds us down.  It is simpler than it looks.
>   Imagine a hot air balloon being held down by four anchors.  The 
> balloon represents the belief holding you down and actions and 
> words this belief influences.
>   The four anchors represent evidence, logic, emotion, and social 
> consensus.  To release the balloon you must replace the offending 
> belief.  Do this in five steps:
>   Step 1: Identify the belief.  Find a belief that is holding you 
> down.  Tip: write down beliefs until you find one that hurts.  In 
> my case, "You don't really have what it takes to be world-class 
> author speaker thinker."
>   Step 2: Identify the anchors.
>   What evidence events anchor the belief? were my books arenbt on 
> the NYT bestseller list were
>   What emotions anchor your belief? were I feel comfort because 
> in not really trying, I know I can't fail were
>   Who around you reinforces this belief (social consensus)? were 
> well intentioned people who congratulate me on already having 
> achieved the dream were
>   What logic locks in this belief; what "dependent beliefs" fit? 
> were wanting to fill a stadium is self-centered, thinking I can 
> offer what people don't already know is conceited were
>   Step 3: Pick a new belief.  What alternative belief would be 
> consistent with someone who really achieves your dream? were I am 
> destined to a best-selling business thinker and speaker.  were
>   Step 4: Release the anchors.
>   Evidence: what alternative evidence supports this new belief 
> were people pay me lots of money to speak, I'm sharing the stage 
> with some of the biggest business gurus were Emotions: what does 
> it feel like to really live this new belief and fulfill your 
> dream were passion, purpose, having made an impact were Social 
> consensus: who can you surround yourself with to support the new 
> belief were other business gurus and authors were Beliefs: how 
> can you replace the bdependent beliefsb identified above? were 
> this is not conceited because it's about serving others; the best 
> business gurus do it to serve others, not for their ego were
>   Step 5: Set your course.  Write down five specific things you 
> will do (action) and say (words) that force you to live your new 
> belief.
>   Completing this process took me 20 minutes and has put me fully 
> in the game, committed and knowing I can win.  Would that be 
> worth your time?
>   Copyright B) 2012 Mansueto Ventures LLC.  All rights reserved.
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