Thoughts Have Power

Since you are reading this article, I imagine you are familiar with the the notion that your thoughts create your reality – in other words, what you think about, you bring about. 

This powerful concept was discussed in Napoleon Hill’s iconic book Think and Grow Rich, one of the most famous motivational books in history. It is packed with wisdom that has inspired countless readers since its original publication in 1937.

Blaine Oelkers, our guest in Episode 81 of The MINDSet Game® podcast, discovered Think and Grow Rich as a college student with entrepreneurial ambitions and a strong interest in self-improvement. After implementing the book’s guidance on how to turn your dreams into reality, Blaine soon began to experience results in his own life, which led to his journey as the owner of several successful businesses. Years later, he purchased an original copy of Think and Grow Rich that included instructional pages not found in later editions.

In this week’s podcast episode, Blaine shares some of the wisdom from those pages and other experiences he has had throughout his career. 

Gaining clarity on what you want most

One of the key concepts from the instructional pages of Think and Grow Rich focuses on the importance of getting clear and specific about what you truly want. If you find yourself struggling to clearly define your goal, Blaine suggests a few exercises, including the following:

•  Imagine that you’re at your 100th birthday party. As people come up to you and talk to you about your life, what are they saying? How will your friends, family members, and others from your community remember you? Picturing the conversations you would have may help you tune into what you want from the future.

•  Imagine that you win the Powerball and after a year of celebrating and ensuring that your family and friends are provided for, you still have $100 million left. With all your financial obligations already taken care of, what would you do next? This exercise can help you identify your core passions.

Tuning your brain’s reticular activating system

In Blaine’s TEDx talk where he delves into the concept of “what you think about, you bring about,” he discusses the brain’s reticular activating system (RAS).

The RAS functions like an executive secretary of the conscious mind, bringing certain things to your attention while filtering out many others. The classic example of how the RAS works is when you’re shopping for a new car, you begin noticing the type of car you’re interested in everywhere – it’s not that the car has become more common, but rather that your RAS has tuned into it. 

By programming your RAS to pay attention to things that align with your goals, you will likely start to notice valuable ideas and opportunities all around you. So how can you program your RAS?

Blaine suggests that every morning and every night before you go to bed, you read aloud your statement of what you want to bring about in your life. In addition, you can try to flood your RAS with inputs that align with where you want to go, such as by surrounding yourself with people or reading/listening to materials that can help you achieve your goals. 

Other lessons that Blaine shares include:

•  The idea that your imagination – the unlimited part of your mind where you can come up with new possibilities – is like a muscle that can either be strengthened or left to atrophy. To strengthen it, Blaine suggests immersing yourself in the arts (such as classical music) or using technology that can spur creativity.

•  Tips for developing an effective “bring about” statement, including the SMARTER formula. 

In addition to being a lifelong entrepreneur, Blaine Oelkers is a leading expert in personal implementation, America’s only Chief Results Officer®, and author of the Think and Grow Rich Book Study Edition. To watch or download a transcript of his TEDx talk, visit http://blainetedx.com. To hear more of Blaine’s lessons and wisdom from Think and Grow Rich, tune into Episode 81 of The MINDSet Game® podcast!