By Dave Lindbeck
Thinking BIG!
While in college, I remember reading the book, The Magic of Thinking BIG, by David J. Schwartz. That was a time when I not only dreamed big and thought I could be both rich and famous, but I acted as if my life depended on it. Then I graduated and got a job.
That "big" stuff seemed to go down hill from there. I was in a corporate job by then, and immersed in the reality of the workaday world. Soon the fact began setting in that I didn't have a brilliant idea to catapult me to fame and fortune. And in those days, we didn't have the lottery.
It wasn't that I became a negative person or one without hope; I just began to see things more "realistically." When I would hear someone say, "Live your dreams," or "you too can have the life you want," or "YES, you are the master of your magical destiny," I would think "yeah right, you're just trying to sell books and tapes – that's for people who don't know any better."
Then one day it hit me!
Thinking BIG is not about the 6-month European vacation, the beach house or the Ferrari. In fact, thinking BIG isn't about things. It's BIGGER than that.
Thinking BIG is about possibilities. It's about knowing and trusting in the potential for something great that is not only present, but also possible beyond your ability to picture or even comprehend it. Simply stated – Thinking BIG goes beyond your particular situation.
Let me explain.
Sometimes during the course of a day, something happens. This is a result of either a voluntary thought you have, or an interaction. These evoke a reaction. As a result, you do things such as judge a circumstance or situation; react to a person, a place or thing. Maybe you have negative thoughts that your job sucks, your small business will never succeed, or that your boss will never like you. In all of this, you have doubt and FEAR. However, that's not the problem. The problem is you're just not thinking BIG enough.
The confusion that most of us have is we focus on the "problem" and try to come up with a "solution." However, those solutions are rooted in small thinking. We think - fix this, change that, convince him or her. Buy this, say that, move here, go there. Those solutions are not about dreams. They're about changing beds during the nightmare. By not thinking BIG, you stay bogged down in the details of the problem.
"I'm just not thinking BIG enough."
Just the thought of thinking big expands the possibilities open to you, and thereby your potential. It gives you new perspective and most importantly, a sense of relief and hope. It takes you out of the mode of solving problems and moves you into the realm where "anything is possible". Although thinking BIG does not remove the troublesome details, it puts them in perspective so they become feathers where before they were heavy weights.
My challenge for you is this:
Every time you're faced with a negative thought, doubt, fear or troublesome conflict, say to yourself – "I'm just not thinking BIG enough." With this BIG thought in your mind, there's no room for anything else except new possibilities and your own potential.
About the Author: Dave Lindbeck - Business and Career Strategist -
Founder, InStep Coaching -
Success Strategies for Executives and Entrepreneurs
in Financial Services, Real Estate and Technology -
Learn more at http://www.instepcoaching.com -
Get his complimentary e-newsletter at http://www.instepcoaching.com/instep_journal.htm
|
