“Men seek retreats for themselves: houses in the country, sea-shores and mountains; and thou too art wont to desire such a thing very much. But this is altogether a mark of the most common sort of men, for it is in thy power whenever thou shalt choose to retire into thyself. For nowhere, either with more quiet or more freedom from trouble, does a man retire than into his own soul, particularly when he has within him such thoughts that by looking into them he is immediately in perfect tranquility; and I affirm that tranquility is nothing else than the good ordering of the mind. Constantly then give to thyself this retreat, and renew thyself.” – Marcus Aurelius
When Hard Work Doesn’t Work
“The harder you work, the more stress and strain you put into a task, the harder your work becomes.”
– el Furecat
Hold the phone: If the quote mentioned above is true, then why do so many people tell you to work hard? Is hard work really the secret of success?
Well, it appears, on the surface, that hard work is the answer. If you’re not getting the results you want, it makes sense that if you put more time and energy into what you are doing, you’ll get better results. Straight down the line this is true – except for when it isn’t, which is quite often.
The secret of “hard work” is getting the feeling that you are aren’t working hard, even if you are.
For example, let’s say that you are terrible at a specific physical activity, such as shooting free throws. As outlined in Psycho-Cybernetics, Updated and Expanded, you can improve your success percentage by physically practicing free throws every day. In fact, in a 20-day study, those who physically practiced each day improved their percentage of made goals by 24%.
But…. and here’s the clincher, the group that didn’t physically practice, the group that ONLY practiced in their imagination, improved 23%.
Additionally, there was one group in the test that did not practice physically or mentally, and they showed zero improvement.
To summarize, the group that didn’t “work” or practice in anyway, got nowhere. And the two groups that did something each day, improved.
We can assume that the group who physically practiced “worked hard” at improving their free throws, and this helped them improve.
But what about the group who only visualized? Did they “work hard” at picturing the result they wanted, or did they merely take it easy and relax into the feel of the game?
Moreover, why wasn’t there a follow-up test with another group who practiced both the physical and the so-called “mental” aspects of shooting free throws?
Based upon my experiences as an athlete, martial artist, writer, and so on, I can unequivocally state that when you utilize both the physical and the psychological tools that are available, you improve far more than when you choose the physical over the mental, or vice versa.
When you use both tools, the physical and the psychological, an interesting realization takes place within you. And that realization is that the more relaxed you are while you work, the better job you will do.
You do not tend to sink more free throws by shooting them harder.
You do not tend to hit a golfball or baseball further by trying to hit it harder.
You do not write better or speak better by putting more effort into what you are communicating.
You relax your mind and your muscles, you picture what you want and then you allow the Creative Mechanism within to effortlessly guide you to your chosen destination.
In short, you appear to “work hard” by NOT working as hard as you thought was necessary to get the job done.
A pro is someone who makes his or her job appear effortless.
A pro removes the effort, the strain, the grunt mentality from the task at hand.
As a result, the pro understands that it isn’t hard work that leads to success. Instead, it is figuring out how to make what you were doing easier than it was before. And that will only come to you when you’ve put in the practice.
Here endeth the lesson.
Matt Furey
Positive Change Happens After Doing This
“A human being all acts and feels and performs in accordance with what he imagines to be true about himself and his environment. This is a basic and fundamental law of mind. It is the way we are built.”
– Maxwell Maltz, M.D. – Psycho-Cybernetics, Updated and Expanded – page 36
In the above passage, you can see that I underlined and emphasized the word “imagines.”
I have done so because so many self-development coaches automatically associate the word “imagines” with the word “believes.”
Can you imagine something and bring it about without believing it in a deep and significant way?
Yes, you can.
This is what we refer to as “testing” something to see what happens. You’re not really sure as to whether something will make a difference or not, so you give it a whirl and take note of your results.
Here’s a simple example:
One evening, not so long ago, I was observing a baseball player who wanted to throw the ball 90 miles per hour. He was stuck and struggling, maxing out around 87. The coach who was working with him kept giving him mechanical fixes, none of which added an iota of extra velocity.
After several minutes I asked the coach if I could make a suggestion. He agreed. I pulled the athlete to the side and gave him a different mental picture, one of him effortlessly throwing the ball. It was an exaggerated, hyperbolic and nonsensical mental picture, one that could NOT be turned into reality, one that the athlete could NOT possibly believe was true. I made no comment to this athlete whatsoever about his existing beliefs, or what I thought they should be.
On the next pitch the athlete threw the ball 89 miles per hour. This got him excited. He grabbed another ball and hit 89.9. And on his next throw, using the ridiculous mental imagery I gave him, he topped 90 miles per hour for the first time in his life.
When the radar gun showed 90, he looked at me and exclaimed, “Oh my, God. I can’t believe it. This is incredible. What you teach really works.”
“You didn’t need to believe it,” I replied. “All you needed to do was imagine it – and then it happened. Remember this as it applies in every area of your life, not just baseball.”
I realize the above flies in the face of those who think you need to change your limiting beliefs before any change takes place in your life.
I have not found that to be true.
On the other hand, I have found that once a person begins to change his or her limiting mental pictures into positive, broad and expansive images, a whole lot of positive change is forthcoming… and oftentimes, at a speed that defies logic.
Here endeth the lesson.
Matt Furey
The Best Way to Focus
“Picture yourself vividly as defeated and that alone will make victory impossible. Picture yourself vividly as winning and that alone with contribute immeasurably to success. Great living starts with a picture, held in your imagination, of what you would like to do or be.” – Dr. Harry Emerson Fosdick
It is not positive words or phrases that turn your life around. Rather, it is the mental pictures we form when we see, hear, recite or write positive words or phrases.
If you are trying to think positive with your words, and you’re not feeling a shift in how you feel (and you’re not getting positive results), then chances are beyond excellent that you are unconsciously and unintentionally picturing the opposite.
If you are feeling down, take note of what you are picturing that causes this feeling. You will discover it is NOT the words that do you in; it IS the images that ride along with the words.
When you change your negative mental pictures to ones that are positive, your emotional state will completely shift.. automatically, and almost regardless of the words you are using.
If you have a positive mental picture – you can express yourself with negative self-talk and it will be virtually irrelevant.
If you say, “I am going to flunk this exam,” but you are picturing yourself getting an A, the negative words are cancelled by the imagery.
If a boxer says, “I am going to win,” but he is picturing himself losing, he will probably lose.
This doesn’t mean you should pay zero attention to your words. It does mean that you will be better off when you are paying 99.9999 percent attention to your mental pictures.
Here endeth the lesson.
Matt Furey
Down to the Last Detail
“Whether we realize it or not, each of us carries about with us a mental blueprint or picture of ourselves. It may be vague and ill-defined to our conscious gaze. In fact, it may not be consciously recognizable at all. But it is there, complete down to the last detail.”
– Maxwell Maltz, M.D. – Psycho-Cybernetics, Updated and Expanded
What are Your Goals?
“The goals that our own Creative Mechanism seeks to achieve are mental images, or mental pictures, which we create by the use of imagination.”
Maxwell Maltz, M.D. – Psycho-Cybernetics, Updated and Expanded
So there you have it, my friend.
The goals that you achieve are not mere words or affirmations written on a sheet of paper.
The words you write (or speak), when turned into mental images or pictures, contain enormous power. These mental images generate positive feelings, and as a result, lead you toward what you want to accomplish.
If you’re rewriting or reciting affirmations to no avail, turn your words into images and observe the difference it makes.
A word without a mental image of what it represents is nothing but a collection of letters.
A word with an image attached to it is a catalyst that moves you closer to the target you want to reach.
Matt Furey
Psycho-Cybernetics.com
Reading is Steroids for the Brain
“The man who does not read has no advantage over the person who cannot read.” – Mark Twain
Even though audio and video recordings are incredibly valuable, and life-changing, they do not take the place of sitting in a chair, in a quiet room, with a book in your hand.
If you don’t believe me, all you need to do is test this out.
Begin your day with a book in your hands. Read something that makes you laugh, or think, or imagine different.
Avoid watching or listening to the news as your day begins. Stay away from email and social media for at least an hour.
You can listen to music if you want, provided there are no lyrics. Never listen to music produced by a rocker who is frequently depressed.
As you sit with a book in your hand, take a look at the clock. Plan on reading for 20-30 minutes, but before doing so, make a note as to how you feel.
READY? GO!
When you are finished, close your book and sit silently for a minute. Notice how different you feel. Notice how your brain is now alert, energized and ready for more.
Also take note of how you have an advantage, not just over those who cannot read, but over those who think that audio and video is better. Audio and video are important, and they are helpful. But when it comes to that “steroids for the brain” sensation you are looking for, books will always be numero uno.
Here endeth the lesson.
Matt Furey
Do Something With Your Idea
“Ideas make the world move.
Ideas make people move.
Ideas lead you to success –
but only if you…
DO SOMETHING.”
– Matt Furey
Long-Term v. Short-Term Goals
Questions of the Day
Long-term v. short-term goals
Hey Matt,
Love all the emails… do you think it’s best to focus on and visualize the long-term goal every morning or just what you need to do that day to move towards your goal or both?
Bill
Reply: Thank you, Bill. The answer depends on what type of person you are and where you are in terms of your ability to focus and accomplish goals. If you’re not accustomed to setting and achieving goals, then starting with a long-term goal is not a good strategy. Begin with daily goals, build momentum, and then over time you can set longer range objectives. Even with a long-range goal, however, you still need to focus on today goals MOST of the time.
Aligning one’s ship
Hello Matt
In Psycho Cybernetics, Dr Maltz has a quote regarding aligning one’s ship alongside that of an enemy (and that one cannot go far wrong if one does so).
I am struggling to understand the meaning of this. I understand the liberation and release of mental load associated with pure forgiveness. I can’t help but wonder does Dr Maltz have an additional message I have missed.
Can you help with an example please?
Thanks Matt
Dave D
My Reply:
Dave, for greater context, I will begin with the entire quote:
“Admiral William F. Halsey’s personal motto was a quotation from Nelson, “No Captain can do very wrong if he places his Ship alongside that of an Enemy.” “‘The best defense is a strong offense,’ is a military principle,” said Halsey, “but its application is wider than war. All problems, personal, national, or combat, become smaller if you don’t dodge them, but confront them. Touch a thistle timidly, and it pricks you; grasp it boldly and its spines crumble.”
If you mentally picture what is written above, you can see that it doesn’t mean you become chummy with your enemy, nor is it referring to forgiveness (an entirely different matter). It’s about studying your enemy as well as your own fears and worries; it’s about going after what you want and noticing that difficulties and fear diminish when they are confronted.
A sports analogy for the “enemy ship” would be watching film of an opposing team (the enemy) to prepare for a game. You learn what the enemy is up to in the film, so you are prepared. As you prepare, you may have emotions such as fear and self-doubt to deal with. Don’t run from them for they are merely false mental images. Extinguish them by using the power of mental imagery.
Question about digital products:
Matt, I want to get your Theatre of the Mind audio program but I no longer have a CD player. Is there a way to get this program as an audio download?
Jenny
Hello Jenny. Yes, you can get Theatre of the Mind and some of my other narrated books at audible.com.
Here endeth today’s Q n A.
Matt Furey
If You Hate Making Mistakes
“Mistakes contain the essential information we need to rise above them.
When we are “off course,” we are also on it. In the process of missing a
shot, we are also given the feedback that will help us make the next one.”
Matt Furey
