With spring beginning to bloom all around us, we are drawn to a spirit of growth and rebirth. Spring cleaning puts us all in a mindset of “out with the old, in with the new.” 
Along these same lines, it is a good time to be mindful of those habits and hang-ups which may be preventing us from achieving our full potential for success in our lives. How can you grow and thrive to become all you are capable of in this life – at work, at home, and in your relationships with others?
First and foremost, success can be molded by the people with whom we surround ourselves and the messages we send ourselves.
So, could there be a hidden saboteur hindering you from your full potential, your full capacity for growth and success?
Whether you are seeking that next promotion, or working toward being a better parent, spouse or student – your biggest obstacle to success may actually reside within you. What is this critical key to success?
It is your subconscious mind.
You must learn to carefully regulate what information reaches this powerful lockbox, for it can affect your opportunities for success throughout your life. Amazingly, you can also make it work to your advantage…IF you understand HOW it works.
First, a brief history — as you may recall, in the early 1900’s, Napoleon Hill was commissioned to study the most successful people of his time to identify their common traits. After compiling his findings, Hill determined that by anyone could become successful by following a “formula”, which he called “success principles.” One of these key success principles is the power of the subconscious mind.
The subconscious mind is one of THE most powerful “success principles” available to us, having a direct effect on our success, it depends entirely on the messages it is fed. Many research studies have been done on the subconscious mind in the past 100 years, proving its power. Yet, most people are seemingly unaware of the kind of impact it can have on their lives – for good or for bad.
Through further study, Hill identified the following important attributes of the subconscious mind:
- The subconscious mind consists of a field of consciousness in which every impulse of thought that reaches the conscious mind – through any of the five senses – is classified and recorded.
- The subconscious acts first on the dominating desires which have been mixed with emotional feeling, such as faith.
- There is evidence suggesting that the subconscious mind is the connecting link between the finite mind of man and Infinite Intelligence.
- Man’s stock of knowledge on this subject is “pitifully limited”!
- You can use Hill’s Principles of Success to acquire the ability to reach and influence your subconscious mind.
- It takes habit to direct the subconscious mind. Be patient. Be persistent. Results will follow.
Basically, you cannot afford to neglect this critical component of success – your subconscious mind can hold great power over your ability to achieve your full potential and ability for growth! Moreover, by consciously applying focus and effort, you can learn to develop CONTROL over what messages reach your subconscious mind, thereby influencing your chances of achieving success.
Think of the subconscious mind as a storehouse of your knowledge and beliefs, working day and night. It records and stores vast amounts of information during the course of your life, most of which your conscious mind has long since forgotten.
Interestingly, the subconscious mind lacks the ability to reason or ascertain “good” from “bad.” It therefore simply absorbs anything it is told. For example, if you heard negative comments about yourself at some point in your life, your subconscious mind has stored that information as TRUE. It takes and absorbs ANY orders it is given repeatedly, and acts upon those orders as truth…so be careful what you think!
Because the subconscious mind cannot discriminate between bad and good, or truth and lies, it takes the input information and stores is as part of your subconscious mind — part of your belief in yourself. This is important to understand.
- Your subconscious mind functions voluntarily, whether you make any effort to influence it or not.
- Therefore, you must become aware and very careful of the messages coming into your mind.
- There is real, proven POWER in the content of those messages, and the impact they will have on your life.
So, what messages do you send yourself? Could there be a hidden saboteur living with you? Or do you send yourself positive, encouraging messages to spur growth and forward progress? As Henry Ford once said, “Whether you think you can, or you think you can’t – you’re right.”
Let’s do a quick “thought assessment” to find out:
- When is the last time you objectively reviewed what kind of messages you send yourself on a daily basis?
- So…what messages DO you tell yourself about your abilities and your potential for success?
- Are your thoughts mostly positive, like those of a “coach”? Or, are your thoughts and self-talk often negative, acting as a “saboteur” to your own success?
- What negative messages have you received from others over the years, which are still lurking in your mind, impacting your opportunities for success?
- How do you act and react in your relationships with others? Do you need a mental tune-up?
Think about this for a moment. If you are not aware of the impact negative messages can have on your subconscious mind, they will act as a hidden force sabotaging opportunities for your future, and possibly your relationships with others around you. But, you CAN change this.
Changing negative thoughts requires that you consciously and actively FEED the mind positive messages to reverse any negative beliefs or programming. In recent years, you have likely heard about “the power of positive thinking.” Positive thinking CAN and DOES influence the subconscious mind.
The KEY is this:
Hill taught us that if you fail to plant desires in your subconscious mind, it will feed upon the thoughts which reach it as the result of neglect.
Therefore, you must actively shut off the flow of negative impulses and aid in purposefully influencing your subconscious mind through positive thoughts, goals, plans and desires.
MAJOR POSITIVE emotions to cultivate in your thoughts and in your language include:
- Desire
- Faith
- Love
- Enthusiasm
- Romance
- Hope
It is important to note that, in contrast, NO EFFORT is required to pass negative emotions on to the subconscious mind. Negative emotions voluntarily inject themselves into the thought impulses, which insure passage to the subconscious mind.
MAJOR NEGATIVE emotions to be avoided:
- Fear
- Jealousy
- Anger/Hatred
- Revenge
- Greed
- Superstition
Positive and negative emotions CANNOT occupy the mind at the same time. One or the other must dominate. Become conscious of your emotions and the messages you are sending yourself on a daily basis. Cultivate the positive and avoid the negative to build a success-focused subconscious mind.
If it is within YOUR OWN power to change your deep subconscious mind, then by using this power, you can consciously gain control of sending yourself only positive communications. “Feed” your subconscious mind positive information to develop it toward a certain goal or desire. Create a list of positive words and attributes to focus on throughout the day. Keep them in view to be reminded of them throughout the day. (This is also called Autosuggestion, another of Hill’s Success Principles, which we will cover in another article.)
As Hill said, “Man is in absolute control over the material which reaches the subconscious mind.” Seek out positive messages. Feed your mind with positive books, seminars, CDs and experiences. Be careful about what you watch on TV and how much news you read. Just remember that every bit of information is going into your subconscious mind, shaping your life.
Now, set your mind, your focus, on any plan or purpose you’d like to achieve, and make it happen.
“You can voluntarily hand over to the subconscious mind any plan, desire or purpose which you wish transformed into concrete form.” – Napoleon Hill
It may take time, but by forming a HABIT of applying and using positive thoughts and emotions, you will develop a more success-oriented mindset. This new habit can drive you to new heights, opening your world to endless possibilities for success in all aspects of your life.
So – are you IN? Will you commit to making a positive change in your life, beginning with controlling and directing your thoughts in a positive direction? Don’t wait. Start on this journey of self-improvement today and you will soon begin to see the results. Remember, only you can control your “stinkin’ thinkin’!”
Until next time, we wish you positive thoughts!
(If you think others may benefit from this article, please follow us and share it – thank you!)
Follow me on Twitter @JaeRock19