4 Mental Habits for Mastery
In this post I’ll share with you 4 Mental Habits that will bring you closer to Life Mastery, will make you smarter & more self-aware.
“Life Mastery is the knowing and understanding that success is the natural consequence of our realization of the Infinite Power within. ~ Donalee Gastreich
The mind is the most powerful tool you have and no one taught you how to utilize it. The 4 Mental Habits shared in this post are the same habits practiced by most successful people. In fact, it will be difficult to sustain your success without them.
First, we all know changing your results requires identifying unproductive, limiting thoughts and perspectives, and mapping out goals to replace your unhealthy patterns with healthy patterns of thinking, feeling, and behaving. So read with an open mind and a willingness to hear what you need to hear.
Are you ready to Awaken Your Mind, and reinvigorate your intellectual curiosity?
These Four Simple Habits Can Help You To Expand Beyond Your Wildest Expectations.
1. Intentional Learning
– Ask yourself, what your belief is about learning – Do you believe that we learn continuously, or do you believe that you only learn when you set out to do so. Many of us would argue that we learn continuously. We learn every day in every way from our environment when we are conscious and aware of what we are perceiving. We read books. We stay up to date on politics and current affairs both locally and globally. We travel to new places and do new things. It is wonderful to have a life that incorporates learning passively in the context of other activities – but when was the last time you went out of your way to try something new for the sake of increasing your knowledge base? When we learn as a result of more intentional ventures, we tend to step outside our comfort zone. When all our choices are just variations of the past, we may grow, but do we really change? The reason my clients see massive results is that they are stepping out of their comfort zone on a regular and repeated basis. Some, daily. My advice to the reader is, once a month, commit to doing an activity that is outside of your comfort zone. Do this with the sole intention of learning something new. Read a book about a subject or individual that you disagree with. Attend services at a church you don’t belong to. Take a class in a subject that would surprise your friends. Spend an evening researching a new discovery. Sign up for a workshop or conversation on a topic you know very little about. You might just unlock a new and unexpected part of your mind.
2. Courageous Bold Questioning
– Most of us neglect to question anything at all. We are either complaining about what we see, hear, and recognize or we take the world as it is. We don’t dive any deeper, and we live complacently. We may never find out what exactly we’ve missed out on – and is this a tragedy? Maybe, maybe not, and you won’t know if you don’t start asking the hard questions. Begin by asking them of yourself. What is my belief about this? Why am I upset? What is it I am really seeking? Ask them about your family, your friends, your co-workers, and your political system. A difficult question does not need to be confrontational or offensive – it just has to challenge the mind. Ask your children what they’d change about the world if they had the power to change one thing. Ask a local politician how a controversial bill might affect their own family.
Ask your boss what their greatest regret – and greatest triumph – have been in their career. Then, truly listen to the answers. Form more questions. Dig even deeper. Here is one of my favorite quotes by Albert Einstein.
Tony Robbins said, “The quality of your life is determined by the quality of the questions we ask about life.” Start today asking bigger questions, this is where the statement from scripture “Ask and you shall receive” makes perfect sense and works over and over again. But it is all in the question. Questions must be valid, powerful, direct, and with intention. Reread Einsteins quote to best understand what is meant here.
3. Conscious Immersive Listening
One of the greatest assets you can own is the art of conscious listening,
“To Listen, to really hear another, and To observe without judgment are the greatest gifts you can give another” ~ Donalee Gastreich
Listening to truly hear and understand what the speaker is saying. Most people don’t listen, they are just listening to respond.
– As Chuck Palahniuk stated, “People don’t listen, they just wait for their turn to talk.” If you are trying to formulate your next words, while someone else is speaking – YOU are not listening consciously. While passive listening is a great tactic for making conversation and ensuring that your partner feels heard, it’s really about you, yourself. Instead, try listening in a conscious and immersive way. Lose yourself in their words. Don’t analyze or think critically. Don’t comment, relate your own experiences, or decide whether you agree or disagree. Just listen. Hear them out. Don’t react – internally or externally – until your partner is completely finished speaking. Apply this strategy to any monologue you care about – a political speech, a TED Talk, or even your child’s rambling account of their day at preschool. The more we absorb, the more we learn. The more we listen, the more open and powerful our minds can become. Many times others want to share and in their sharing, they themselves gain clarity and focus. Unless another is specifically asking for your opinion or feedback, offering it out of your own need can be self-serving and come across as trying to change their mind about what was shared. This is a skill that will need to be practiced and modeled often to gain mastery. I still find myself wanting to add my two cents in conversations with those closest to me, especially when I have an opinion on the topic or am passionate about the subject. 
4. Unbiased Active Observation
– You may think you already see everything around you – but do you really notice it? Do you see things unbiased? Most of us observe our world in a passive way, taking note of only the things we think pertain to us directly. Spend time today observing your world with a critical eye, instead. Observe with the intention of noticing the detail, notice the small things. Be present in the moment. Think about what you see on a deeper level. Consider your own reactions and preconceptions. Notice where you have a strong opinion or judgment. Why does the world work this way? Why do you see things the way that you do? What does it say about your character? We often look inward to increase our sense of self-awareness. You’ll be surprised at what you can learn about your inner world when you make an effort to shift your focus outward. When you begin to actively observe and be aware of current moments in life, you begin to see things in a whole new way. You may notice some old beliefs or thinking. You may notice some things you have outgrown and begin to open up to seeing things in a whole new way. You may begin to notice opportunity or synchronicity playing out all around you. Have fun with this. Life is meant to be enjoyed and shared.
“Live as if you were to die tomorrow. Learn as if you were to live forever,”
~ Mahatma Gandhi.
Practicing these 4 skillsets until they become habits will have you well on your way to Life Mastery and creating all that you desire in your life.
