Thinking Small Keeps you Playing Small

No matter what you want to accomplish in your life, your career or your business, if you don’t think BIG then you might as well stay home.  I know that sounds a bit harsh but the truth is, if you aren’t willing to expand your ideas and skill-sets, set huge goals, move any blockages out of the way and take massive action you won’t go anywhere, at least not fast.  I think that is a reason people give up – they set goals that are too small which leaves them feeling as if they are having no forward progress; eventually, they get frustrated and quit.  This sets a pattern for their life.

If you look at people that are doing great things in business – their own or for corporations – they all have one things in common:  they are big thinkers and they take action, all without allowing anything to get in their way.  They may have had naysayers, skeptics or disbelievers; they may have had challenges in finding resources or people to support them.  But, despite those barriers they pushed through and achieved the things they wanted.  Their BIG thoughts drove them to go do great things.

Staying small in thinking means you are going with ‘the pack’ – you are following the status quo or allowing others opinions to dictate how you live your life, although you might not be fully aware of that influence.  If you’re ready to play a bigger game and go do great things in your career, your business or your life then here are 3 steps to get you there:

1.  Dream BIG – you know that you have goals or desires you want to attain so allow yourself to entertain them.   Go sit in a quiet place, a room in your house or a spot outside, and let your creative juices to flow; use your senses, such as your visuals or your hearing, to create the picture your see. ” Watch” yourself as you are in the end result you want to achieve; pay attention to the actions you are taking in this big world (no limits) and the impact you are having, which is why you want to achieve this end results.  Utilize all your senses in the scenario to really experience your ‘why’

2. Pay Attention to the Feelings that arise – it is important to be aware of any and all emotions that arise as you are in your dream big exercise.  Our thoughts lead to emotions which then leads us to act on them so we can either have positive or fearful/negative emotions.  If we feel more positively about something we feel more confident to act on that; but if we allow fear or other negative emotions to be the focus we will not take action or take actions that have negative consequences.  How we manage our emotions is a choice; but if you are not fully aware of them you can bypass them and the actions you take won’t be as fulfilling.  Focusing on your positive emotions is the key as you will only see more possibilities and will be open to whatever lays ahead of you.

3.  Change Your Thoughts and Take Action – Big thinking means no self-limiting beliefs, which are those unwanted and subconscious thoughts that we have heard or believe for years.  It’s the self-talk, like the little devil on your shoulder, that whispers in your ear, of the fears which keep you playing small.  If you believe these thoughts, whether they are true or not, then you will stay where you are but if you challenge those thoughts then your openness will expand and grow.  You have the choice to change your thoughts and embrace positive thoughts;  when you do, you will leap into action and make those dreams a reality.

It’s time to stop allowing your small thinking to prevent you from thinking and acting big.  When you show up, your results will as well!