Author shares three mindsets for success

So you want to be the best, to be at the top of your game. Success is out there just waiting for you to achieve it. But it's not about luck. It's not about talent even though it helps. It's not even about destiny.The first step in achieving success starts in your mind. Convincing yourself, beyond any doubt, is the most essential weapon in your motivational arsenal. Sustaining your conviction is the challenge. Whether you're goal is to renovate your home, find your dream job or to become a world class athlete, the process is the same. The vision starts in your mind and translates itself into action, or not. Failure to act starts in the mind as well. The tiniest doubt can worm its way into your best intentions and undermine all you hoped to achieve until the dream slips away, unfulfilled. This could be your fate if you don't master three critical mind-bending tools for success. The mind is a peculiar thing. Your thoughts live there. So does your will, your imagination, your memory, feelings and perceptions. But you can't touch it, see it or feel it with your fingers. Even though it is intangible, the mind has the unique and unerring ability to control every aspect of your life. Positive thoughts yield positive actions; negative thoughts bring negative ones. Your job, then, is to take control of your mind and to exercise discipline and self-determination as you achieve your goals and watch your dreams become reality. To do this, you must know your thoughts, be conscious of them, take control of them and retain control so you can take your success journey to its obvious conclusion. Know Your Thoughts - Do you know what you're thinking through the day every day? Every moment? Do you actively engage your thoughts, or do you let them wander willy-nilly taking your off point, keeping you from moving forward? Consider the voice inside your head. You might be planning to lose weight, practice tennis, golf or music, or make phone calls for job interviews. But the conditions may not be ideal. Your favorite television program may just have started, your friends could he having a party or you decide you're too tired to exercise and will do it later. Sadly, later may not come, opportunities might be missed simply because you listened to thoughts which led you down the path of inactivity. If that's been your experience, then it's time to make a change. It's time to engage the voice inside your head, self-talk. Since you're aware of your thoughts, you know when they are turning you away from your goals, your dreams. This is the time for you to say, "Stop it!" You must take a proactive stance to remain positive, forward thinking and movement-oriented. Say to yourself, "I can do this!" and before your negative thoughts can respond, support your affirmation with action. Get dressed and put on your shoes for that morning run. Get up an hour early to work on your novel. Activate your strategy to move ahead in your job. You can do it. You know you can. Just do it. Just start. Control Your Thoughts - Now that you're aware of your thoughts, you must start exercising control over them. Sir Isaac Newton's third law of physics says that for every action there is an equal and opposite reaction. While this is a physical law, it certainly applies to those pesky little thoughts that are determined to derail you at every possible juncture. Every time you do something to support your dream, be prepared for negative thoughts to challenge your goals. Your job is to disregard those doubts, prideful rebellions and negative affirmations that are determined to unravel your dreams and keep you stuck in the ordinary. Everyone has a dream and you live the dream through your thought-life. What Little Leaguer doesn't dream of playing in the World Series? Who doesn't dream of being the best of the best, the Top Gun? The dream starts in your thoughts. When you body says, "no," your mind must refuse to stop. It's mind over matter. You must constantly keep your dream in front of you. For some, it's keeping a picture of your dream on the refrigerator to serve as a constant reminder. For others, it's the positive reinforcement of your peers, your mentors, your support system. For others still, it's that private notion that you haven't shared with a soul as you quietly work your way to the top. You end up where you are because of thoughts you think. You must become an expert in controlling your thoughts so you can take your dream to the next level. Keep Your Thoughts - Refuse to give up your dream, especially when you have to balance it against the demands of daily living. While others may be sleeping, resting, and recreating, you have made up your mind to take the higher road to achieving your goals and dreams, to be a champion. You've become an expert in recognizing and commanding those thoughts that would tear you down. You're combating them with self-talk to keep you moving forward. This is a critical time for you. Should you fail to exercise thought-diligence, you could lose it all in one moment of weakness. Though this may seem impossible, negative thoughts inhabit the dark recesses of your mind just waiting to come out when you are stunned by an unforeseen circumstance or a life-changing decision. Doubts about your ability to overcome will pour out of the floodgates if you don't stubbornly stop them with resolve, innovation, and certainty. Find the positive in every circumstance and actively engage it as you push back thoughts of "you can't," "it's too hard," or "it's time to give up." Rehearse and release your mantra of positive self talk that's taken you up to and ultimately past the challenge in front of you. Make good use of your time. Change those negative thoughts into the positive ways you can do things. Get that bad devil out of your head. If you want to become a champion, a dream-achiever, you have to think affirming thoughts that fuel your passion, motivate you to work hard every day, and nurture your heart and soul. Winning the battle of your mind - being aware, gaining and retaining control will give you the tactical support you need to achieve your dreams one day at a time. Scott Gregory is the author of "Champion Mindset: Refusing to Give Up Your Dreams" (Fruitbearer Publishing). Visit him on line at www.ScottGregoryOlympian.com.

********** Published: December 16, 2010 - Volume 9 - Issue 35