In my quest to grow my business, I’m always listening to tapes and teleclasses, attending seminars, and reading books written by experts in their field. One thing I’m clear about from everything I’ve learned, if you want to be successful, it’s up to you to make that happen.

Initially, people come to me because they’re not closing enough sales or bringing in enough clients. Before I begin teaching and coaching them to sell more effectively, I want to uncover what’s really stopping them. I know that once I unlock what’s really in the way of moving forward, anything is possible in their businesses.

Early on in working with them, I’m able to identify the fear that’s keeping them from succeeding. Although, we have the potential to achieve anything we want in our lives, as long as we allow “fear” to hold us back, there’s no freedom to pursue our dreams and goals.

So, why do we let fear get in the way?

Brian Tracy, a well-known motivational speaker and author of “Create Your Own Future” says all fears are learned. You did not come into the world with any fears. When you were born, you were completely unafraid and spontaneous. But as you grew up, your parents and people around you began teaching you to be afraid. They began saying things like, “Stop!” “Get away from there!” “No! You can’t do that!”

As a result, at an early age, you started to believe “I’m not good enough.” Soon after you began to develop the first signs of fear of failure, expressed in the words “I can’t!” Henry Ford once said, “If you believe you can do a thing, or you believe you can’t in either case, you’re probably right.”

Dr. Shad Helmstetter, author of “What to Say When You Talk to Yourself,” writes in his book how we’ve been conditioned by repetitive, negative programming through family, friends, and articles we’ve read. He says the brain is like a “programming machine.” It takes what you put into it and after listening to it over and over again, believes the thoughts are real.

It all starts with our programming! It is our programming that sets up our beliefs, and the chain reaction begins. The sequence is as follows: What we believe determines our attitudes, affects our feelings, impacts our behavior, and determines our success or failure. That’s how the brain works.

If you want to manage yourself in a better way, and change your results, you can do so at any time you choose. It starts with changing the programming of your brain through “self-talk.”

Self-talk is a way to override past negative programming by erasing or replacing it with conscious, positive thoughts. It begins with you making the decision to change. Once you’ve made the decision to change, you’re ready to create positive self-talk that will eliminate your fears and move you in the direction you want to go with your business and life.

ASSIGNMENT:

* Make a list of all your goals and dreams.

* Next to each one, write the fear you have that may keep you from achieving the goal or dream.

* Now, start to practice “self-talk” by replacing negative programming with positive thoughts.

* As you create your positive thoughts, begin your statements with “I am, I can, I have, I do, I believe”. By replacing the negative words “I can’t” or “I’m afraid” with positive thoughts, you beginning to reprogram the way you think.

* Once you have written a list of positive thoughts, record what you’ve written into a tape recorder, listen to your positive thoughts daily and also say them aloud.

* This is the process to follow to reprogram your brain.

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