Our world is overflowing with self-help books, educational podcasts and motivational mantras. One thought stands out as clearly transformative: the idea that your thoughts create your results.
While it might sound like a cliche pulled straight from your vision board, real-world experiences suggest there鈥檚 more truth to this than you might realize.
Optimism isn鈥檛 naive 鈥� it鈥檚 powerful
More and more studies in neuroscience and psychology support the belief that adopting a positive mindset leads to greater emotional resilience, higher performance and even improved physical health.
When people have a belief in their ability to succeed, they are more likely to take proactive steps, push through challenges and attract opportunities.
An example of this is one I've personally used: visualize lifting a heavy weight from start to finish. You see yourself getting into position, how your body feels, the weight under your hands as you lift the weight up and over your head, then back down to the starting position. When you do articulate the exercise, your chance of following through is much higher than if you didn't mentally prepare.
Another example is a job seeker repeatedly telling herself, 鈥淚 bring value to every team I join.鈥� She enters interviews with confidence, makes genuine connections and demonstrates her strengths clearly. This results in her establishing a role that aligns with her skills and values.
Sabotaged by self-doubt: How negative thoughts derail success
What happens when the mental narrative turns dark? Negative thought patterns such as catastrophizing, self-doubt or constant pessimism can limit actions and reinforce bleak outcomes. People often unconsciously act in ways that confirm their fears. This can be referred to as 'self-reinforcing delusions' or plainly, 'vicious circles.'
An example of this is scarcity thinking. Someone constantly fears they鈥檒l 鈥渘ever have enough鈥� money. They avoid investing, say no to opportunities or cling to jobs they hate. What happens? Financial growth stalls but not because money isn鈥檛 possible. Their fear blocks calculated risks.
Take a student in high school. They think, 鈥淚鈥檓 terrible at math, so I鈥檒l probably fail this test.鈥� The effect is that they study less, procrastinate and walk into the test discouraged. The result? You guessed it, they struggle or fail, not necessarily from lack of ability but from under-preparation and mindset sabotage.
The brain reboot and how to start the reframe game
It鈥檚 a cycle that begins internally. Thoughts create emotional responses. Emotions drive decisions and then decisions, over time, form results. Break the cycle at the thought level and you begin to rewrite the story.
There is hope for anyone wanting to shift gears. No matter how deeply you feel set in your ways of thinking, neuroplasticity comes into play. This is the brain鈥檚 ability to rewire itself. Tools like journalling, mindfulness, visualization and cognitive behavioral techniques (CBT) are commonly used to retrain mental habits and turn limiting beliefs into empowering ones.
The next time a thought comes into your mind that you know isn't serving a purpose in your success, ask yourself 'Is this 100 per cent true? Where's the evidence to support (or debunk) this?' Go from 'I can't do this' to 'I can't do this 鈥� yet.' (This is an excellent one to teach kids).
Get curious as to what emotions you're feeling as you either support or sabotage yourself.
Changing how you think doesn鈥檛 guarantee life will be easy, but you'll start to show up differently, project opportunistic energy, and, often, that's enough to shift into a life of abundance.
