WEEK 153: HOW YOUR BRAIN IS REALLY WIRED

It would require a nuclear power plant to energize a computer the size of a city block mimic your brain.    Michio Kaku

REFLECTIONS (learnings and actions): I posted something on FB this week, which peaked a lot of peoples' interests. 

It was centered around how your brain is really wired. 

Knowing this can help you move past difficulty and struggle.

Not knowing this will keep you STUCK.

Let me explain. 

Do you the story of Jimmy Foster?

Well, Jimmy was one of the almost famous and important people on Earth. 

He had all the potential in the world and had the ability to impact people on a grand scale. 

And on the surface he made all the right decisions:

-put in the work daily

-spoke eloquently 

-avoided things which hampered his progress

-achieved most of his goals

He even looked the part:

-handsome features

-slim and healthy (not a body builder)

-dressed well

Yet...

What others did not see is the destructive power that laid below the surface.

When the lights were on him, Jimmy made it look easy.

But, when they were off it was a different story.

Although he consciously made the decision to reach for higher levels, he was never able to truly achieve them.

If did achieve them, it would be temporary and he would return back to a previous version of himself.

It was like there were two versions of Jimmy playing a chess match.

Every conscious move he made to achieve his goals, the other version would counter him without him knowing. 

Although he would make progress, it was always incremental at best. The worst part was he would ALWAYS, ALWAYS revert back to where he started. 

In the beginning Jimmy thought this was just a part of the process of growth.

He stayed determined and kept at it.

Yet...the failure started to chip away at his drive and dedication.

One day off, turned to two days off.

Then three, then a week, then a month....

Jimmy snapped out of it after some time, but saw that everything he had worked so hard to build was gone.

He was devastated. 

Blame, guilt, shame, desperation all sank in.

He believed he was not worthy.

This allowed him to forget who he really was...an incredible person with so much potential. 

This allowed him to believe he was a FRAUD.

And lastly it allowed him to stop SHOWING UP to do the necessary work to turn his potential to reality.

Do you remember Jimmy Foster?

You are probably saying you have never heard of his story, and you would be correct that he was never in any headlines. 

Yet...

Jimmy's story is like so many who do not understand how the brain is really wired.

Thus, it does not matter how much potential or promise they have. 

The crazy thing is they all consciously choose to achieve their greatest goals. 

But not knowing how your brain is wired will lead you to same result as Jimmy...never realized. 

So how is the brain really wired?

First, know it is wired for self-preservation...ie, wants comfort and safety at all costs.

Let me give you an example.

Would you pay $100 or $1000 to improve yourself?

Or better yet, would you purchase something with an 75% or 100% guarantee of working?

Willing to bet you would chose $100 and 100% guarantee.

Why is this?

These two choices are actually easier for the brain to comprehend, and makes it feel comfortable.

Yet...

These are the very things which keep you STUCK from achieving your greatest goals.

Did you know you have access to literally cities full of computers at your disposal in your brain.

Do you understand how much power that it...

The thing is you can only access it when you put it in action. When you are actually doing. 

Thus, only choosing to invest in things if they are "Free" or have "100% guarantees will limit your ability to make choices to help you achieve your greatest goals. 

We are talking some MEGA deep stuff here. 

Now, when you get this you get the greatest ROI off your investments.

Which is capital A, Acceleration.

When you do not get this, you will make choices which either keep you STUCK or burn you out so you don't even get to enjoy the very thing you set out to do because you are too tired to enjoy it. 

So, how can you leverage this information to achieve your greatest goals.

1. Know the brain is wired for self-preservation. (Does not matter how successful you are).

2. Know that the best decision you can make to help you grow will often times feel "uncomfortable" and "wrong."

3. Know the greatest ROI you can get is acceleration. Thus if a program, coach, or product gives you that then invest even if it feels uncomfortable or wrong.

*Do your due diligence and vet your options. 

This framework will allow you to start making decisions which can change the trajectory of your life forever. 

Top three activities that move me forward?

1. Atlas. Confront to empower daily.

2. Live in Zen. Gives me greatest resource on the planet Energy = Drive.

3. PU. Build Focus, Practice trigger, and rehearse success before it even happens. 

Biggest lessons/learnings and corrections? 

Make decisions not based on your current level, but at the level of your HVS.

What are you grateful for?

Abundance to access doctors and medicine to heal our children.

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PLANNING (Implementation Intention):  You will follow through 2X to 3X more likely to complete your weekly task than you normally would just by filling in the following statement.

I plan to complete the weekly task [day] at [time] in [location]. 

A reminder you might have to use multiple Implementation Intentions in order to follow through.

EXECUTION (strategies used):  From week to week, I use a combination of many strategies. There are always some which are used more than others depending on what comes up, but I wanted to offer a link to all them at once. 

My advice is to identify the I CAN'T statement you tell yourself during the most. Then find a strategy below the statement which resonates with you, and then start using it. 

Enjoy!

STRATEGY LIST