Why is having the ‘Correct Mindset’ such an important topic?

Have you heard of the term ‘the correct mindset?’ Perhaps you have heard it many times. Maybe you have not heard it but you are wondering what it means? I want to explain what this term means and also how it can impact our lives.

Firstly, the noun ‘mindset’ can be defined as a person’s thoughts and beliefs which can have an affect on their approach to things or even situations in life. You can think of it as what a person thinks and feels towards something.

Now, let’s go back to define the phrase ‘correct mindset’. I’m sure you already know what I am about to ask!

What is the meaning of ‘having the correct mindset?’

Lets talk about two types of mindsets and how they can each have an affect on us. These are ‘postive’ and ‘negative’ mindsets. ‘Correct’ mindset is ofcourse having a postive mindset. I will use different terms for the word ‘mindset’ as I realise I have used it quite frequently already.. Sorry! Other words and phrases which will be used include ‘frame of mind’, ‘mentality’ and ‘state’. Now let’s discuss what can cause us to develop each way of thinking and how it can then have an impact on our lives!

What is a negative mindset and how can it affects us?

‘Your mind is always eavesdropping on your self-talk.’ -Jim Kwik

Have you ever felt like you aren’t ‘good enough’ for something? Have you ever felt very motivated to start something and then began feeling negative towards it? You might have even wondered if there was an invisible force stopping you from achieving something in your life? Maybe you felt like you are not smart enough to do a course at college or to start your own business? This feeling is what can be described as a ‘negative state of mind’. You might have been nodding to some or even all of the questions I asked? That is ok. Everyone feels like this sometimes. I just want you to think about were this mentality is really coming from.

Ok let’s just think. Think and reflect about the possibilities I will share with you. Ideas about a thing, a goal or situation can come from both internal or external factors. Interal thoughts come from within. We call this our self-talk. Self-talk can be both postive and negative. An example of negative self-talk is when we think negative thoughts like “I’m not good enough” and “I will fail my exam”. This type of thinking is not good because there is a risk of believing these thoughts and then internalizing them, believing that they are true! What is the result? Someone can decide not to apply for the course at college because they thought they weren’t good enough. Now this person has stopped themselves from achieving their dream! Take a moment to think about this. What a sad reality! I am sure that our self-talk has stopped us all from going for something in our lives right? You are not alone. We will talk about our solutions now!

Self-talk can also be positive. A quote that I really like is by world renowned brain coach and memory expert Jim kwik. ‘Your mind is always eavesdropping on your self-talk.’ This is very true. This is why our self talk needs to be positive. Your mind will then internalise this and your positive actions will then follow. Examples of positive self-talk include “I can do this”, “I will give it my best, “I will not give up” and “success is possible”. This is the correct mindset! Your mind will listen.

We can also develop our mindsets through external factors. Apart from our own self-talk, sometimes we form opinions of ourselves and situations based on people’s views. I will give you some examples that I would like for you to really think about. Imagine you are thinking about starting your own business. You are really excited and can’t wait to tell everyone about it! You practice postive self-talk. You feel amazing! Then you tell your friends. They roll their eyes and tell you that you should “just give up” and other negative comments like “you are not serious right!”. Now, you feel really bad about yourself. You say to yourself “maybe they are right” and “I should just give up”. This is so unfortunate. However, this is a reality. So many have been affected by other people’s opinions! These people can be your own friends or family. It doesnt mean they dislike you. Perhaps they just don’t understand your goals. We need to remember its ok if they think differently. We just need to continue to try to be positive for ourselves right? Unfortunately their opinions can then infact change our own self-talk. It’s very important to be careful that this doesn’t happen. So what is the solution?

There is still some hope! External factors can also be postive. Let’s take for example someone who is experiencing extremely negative self talk such as “I am such a failure”. Let’s imagine this person is a high school student. This student has failed their Maths exam. Fortunately this student has very supportive friends. The friends are very encouraging and help the student to think positively. The student is reminded that failure does not define a person. Rather, we try and try again! Now the student feels better. The self-talk has changed to.. you guessed it! It has changed to postive! The student has now developed the correct mindset to take the next exam. Phrases like “I can do this” and “failure doesn’t mean I will always fail at eveything” makes us feel great and then we are more enthusiastic and feel determined to succeed! Awesome right!

I think you realise why having the correct mindset is such an important discussion. I agree that it can be a bit difficult to always be positive. That’s ok. It’s all about reminding yourself that you need to practice positive self-talk. Say to yourself, ok, right now I am feeling negative but I need to try my best to think positively. Think of it as a type of self-care strategy. Positive self-talk is in fact self-care. You are being kind to yourself. Change the negative into positive. Keep trying. Also remember,

Your mind is always listening!

Thank you so much for taking the time to read my blog post! I really appreciate your time. I hope you enjoyed and learnt something beneficial. Please feel free to comment! Also I will try to be more consistent in writing blogs. I appreciate you all so much. I hope to see you again soon!