Ever wondered why we as humans struggle to make progress on our wildest dreams and goals? We know exactly what we need to do, we have lists in place, we have all of the flashiest apps on our phone, we’ve white-boarded actions plans and personal goals for FY18, FY19….FY31, FY32, etc, yet we just never seem to achieve them or go remotely close to delivering on them? Sometimes we are committed for 1 week and then it falls way, some of the more fortunate enough get committed for multiple weeks or even a month before it falls away. Why is this?

If we can successfully define this and understand why this happens to us, it ultimately creates far more clarity around how to overcome the limiting factors working against our wildest sought desires and lay the foundation for guaranteed success in your working life. Sound too good to be true? It’s absolutely not. And, in the next 5 minutes, I’m going to show you why it happens to us and, most importantly, how to break through the barrier.

Your Paradigm

The great majority of us unfortunately wouldn’t have ever given much thought to our paradigm or even be able to define it and what it means to you. Until about 12 months ago I’d never even heard of the word! Your paradigm is how you perceive everything that happens to you – it’s your reality. It’s how you interpret every situation, every action and everything you see or experience in the world. The difference between the uber successful (5%) and the greater population (95%) is their paradigm. Exactly the same applies when you consider where you are right now, today, and where you truly want to be in 1 year, 3 years or 10 years. It’s your paradigm.

Let me give you a working example to make this concept a little clearer. Let us separate you and your future ideal self for one moment. Let’s call it Type A (you as you are today) and Type B (your future ideal uber successful self). These two people look different, they act different, they think differently and the perceive things differently. To sum it up in a couple of words, these two people have different paradigms. Check out the Paradigm Gap.

Type A

It’s important to step out of who you are right now and look at yourself in a 3^rd person perspective for a moment. Where you are in your life right this very moment is because of nobody but you. There is nobody to blame. There is no excuse to be made. Every doubt, every fear, every excuse, every procrastination, every promotion, what you have, what you own, your current health, your mental state. Decisions you have made with all of these variables have led to where you are right now. You have designed, you have manufactured and you ultimately have built this person. So if you don’t like it or if you wish it was different or if you are absolutely over the moon with it, you are the only one to blame (or pat on the back) for the person you are today.

Type B

The Type B personality type is different for every one of us dependent on who we want to be and to what level we want to take our life. Regardless of that; the common theme across all of us is that it is a completely different person. You need to transcend yourself into this person right now – take a moment, a minute, an hour or a whole evening to write down what this person looks like. This is the person you want to be. This is the person you will be – the only hurdle to get to this person is you and the constraints you hold against yourself. This is the hardest part of the process, because you need to be absolutely honest and transparent with yourself on this. What behaviour do you currently possess that is self-sabotaging the future “Type B”? Is it consuming refined sugars every weekend on your ‘cheat day’ where you are still foggy on Monday or Tuesday? Is it the overall lack of sleep you get during the week which leaves you unproductive or a little on edge in the mornings? Is it certain toxic people in your life that roll within your circles of influence? Identify it and write every one of them down.

NOW TAKE ACTION…

Now we all agree on the fact that Type A and Type B are two completely different people. Now here’s the answer to the questions that everyone wants to know – why do we sometimes struggle to achieve our goals? The answer is very simple. You can not and will not achieve your wildest dreams thinking and acting like the person you are today. You MUST start acting like Type B NOW. Acting, feeling, thinking and breathing like Type B right now is going to propel you towards your ideal future self quicker than you could ever imagine.

So how do I do it?

1. First; a little note to guarantee success with this exercise. Write this down on a piece of paper, on your laptop, on your whiteboard, on your mirror at home, on a pad next to your bed – any location where it will constantly be front of mind and start hacking into your subconscious.
2. Identify your Type B identity. Write down who you will become including your job, where you live, your family situation, your revenue, your profile, who you are recognised as, what you like to do, who you like to spend time with.
3. Identify your Type B character traits. To be the Type B identity, what character traits must you possess? Is it self-confidence, determination, intelligence, punctual, driven, patience, inspiring or focused? Write them down.
4. Identify your Type B body type and style. To be the Type B identity, what does your hair look like, how do you dress day in and day out, what accessories do you wear (watch, rings, etc), what is your body type and how do you groom yourself, what fragrance do you wear and who do you associate with. Write them down.

With your identity, your character traits and your body type and style, be as granular as you possibly can. The more finite about it you are, the better the outcomes will be. Consider this; we are not the highest version of ourselves in which we can imagine, more so, we are the lowest version of ourselves which we can accept.

Show up for success. The way you do one thing in your life is the way you do everything in your life. Whether that be the way in which you exercise, the cleanliness of your house or office, the chaos of apps on your phone, the disorder of your desktop. It is all on parity. Your current way of thinking, your current beliefs and your current way of doing things will only get you more of what you have right now. If you want change, it requires change to get it. So start by changing yourself.

So let the transformation begin 🙂