Chapter 4

4/10/16

events do not shape our lives. our beliefs as to what they mean, do. its how we interpret them.
To change behaviors, change beliefs that hold you back.
★ Beliefs actually affect our physical bodies. Our beliefs have the ability to make us sick or healthy in a moment.
Beliefs can either give us the resolve to take action, or weaken & destroy our drive.
★ how to turn an tabletop without legsidea to a table with legsbelief: use some references to support the idea. These are the legs that make your table sturdy. Your idea feels certain & is now a belief.

Strongest legs (references) are ones with a lot of emotion attached to it.
With enough emotional intensity & repetition, our nervous systems experience something as real, even if it hasn't occurred yet.
create references where no references exist to achieve the impossible.
Great leaders are rarely "realistic". They are accurate.
optimists eventually end up mastering the skill. Pessimists fail.
Picturing yourself succeeding; faith references. This leads the optimists to persist until they succeed. The past ≠ The future
Achievers rarely see a problem as permanent.
An achiever never sees one problem as pervasive, or controlling their life.
don't take problems personally. Just modify approach.
If we associate enough pain to anything, we'll change
★ Someone with a conviction is so passionate about their belief that they're willing to risk rejection or make a fool of themselves for the sake of their conviction.
To create a conviction, 1) start with a belief. 2) reinforce with references. 3) find something that triggers emotional intensity ("what will it cost me if I don't?"). 4) take action.
Social proof limits your life. It makes it like everybody else's.
How do you know what beliefs to adopt? Find someone who is producing the results you want in life. Model your life after people who are already succeeding.

Business: quality always costs less.

constant commitment backed by action

Ask yourself 3 questions every night: 1) What have I learned? 2) What did I contribute or improve? 3) what did I enjoy?

Stop! brainstorm all the beliefs you have, both those that empower you & disempower you.

Exercise: List the beliefs you hold, including those that empower you and those that limit you.

These empowering beliefs need to be strengthened & turned into a conviction.
Question the disempowering beliefs (pg. 102) to weaken them. write down replacements for limiting beliefs. Then strengthen.

Exercise: Replace limiting beliefs with empowering alternatives, then identify reasons and evidence that strengthen the new beliefs.

ask yourself"What would I have to believe in order to succeed here?"