Category: Visualization

Four Quick Tips from John Assaraf

Four Quick Tips from John Assaraf

Want more success in life? Here are four quick tips from John Assaraf, CEO of Neurogym, that you can put into action today.

Here are tips on:  1) reducing stress, 2) vision boards, 3) utilizing mental contrasting, and 4) writing down your goals.

Three Minute “Innercise” to Reduce Stress

Stress is bad for you. When you feel it starting to weigh on you, take three minutes and “innercise.” Allow the stress to evaporate. Innercise is John’s term for mindfulness. It is to your brain as exercise is to your body.

3-Minute Innercise to Reduce Stress

Some stress, when it comes to performance, may be good for you . . . but too much will drain your energy and overwhelm your willpower. This simple 3-minute Innercise can dramatically reduce stress levels so you can relax and feel more focused and productive.

Posted by John Assaraf on Wednesday, August 15, 2018

Create a Vision Board

Create a vision board and look at it frequently throughout the day.

Vision boards contain pictures of your goals: what you want to become or want to have in your life. When you see these images, they turn on the dopamine receptors in the brain.

When you take those visions and see yourself doing the things that you need to do to achieve your goals, you activate the release of dopamine which causes you to feel  motivated and seek even greater goals and rewards.

Do Vision Boards Really Work?

Do vision boards really work? It’s a question I get asked all the time… and my answer is YES! Here’s why: It works because when you see images of the things you want to achieve, or do, or become, you're actually activating the dopamine receptors in the brain, the feel-good chemicals in the brain. And when you take those visions and you see yourself behaving in ways that are required to achieve that vision, you're actually activating the left prefrontal cortex, which is the CEO, genius part of your brain.Do you currently have a vision board?

Posted by John Assaraf on Monday, July 2, 2018

Utilize Mental Contrasting

Mental contrasting is a technique used by astronauts, navy seals, CEO’s and others to motivate themselves to take action towards their goals

To do mental contrasting, take a goal you want to achieve. Write down what that goal looks like when you achieve it and what it feels like.

Next, close your eyes and see yourself as you are today and see yourself as you want to be, achieving that goal.

When you create this mental contrast, you will motivate yourself to start taking action automatically.

Why Navy Seals and CEO's Love Mental Contrasting

Astronauts, Navy Seals, and successful CEOs all use mental contrasting. Why? Because it helps you achieve more of your goals!Here's how to put it into practice…-Pick a goal you want to achieve-Write down and think about how it will feel once you’ve achieved your goal. Really hone in on the positive aspects and emotions.-Now, write down and think about several obstacles that may make achieving this goal difficult.-Finally, close your eyes and visualize where you are today and see yourself overcoming those obstacles and actually achieving your goal. Do this frequently and you’ll start training your brain to automatically start taking action towards your goals!Let me know in the comments one goal you’ve been wanting to achieve…

Posted by John Assaraf on Monday, June 25, 2018

Write Down Your Goals

Write down your goals and review them daily.

Recent research indicates that writing down or typing our goals, makes us up to 42% more likely to achieve them.

Why? This happens because the process of writing them down, forces us to get clear about what we want. It also gives our brain a clear direction that this is something that is important to me. This is what I want to achieve. We need to figure out how to do this.

So don’t leave that goal in your head. Write it down on paper and achieve it.

Have Goals? Then Do This Now!

Here's this week's goal setting tip. In this video, I share one exercise that recent studies show will help increase your chances of achieving your goals by up to 42%. Commit yourself to doing this exercise this week and then let me know how the process made you feel.

Posted by John Assaraf on Monday, June 11, 2018

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Eight neuroscientific secrets of financial success

The formula for making more money is entirely different from the strategies that will bring you happiness.  Making more money is simple but it’s not easy. Noted neuroscience researcher, Mark Robert Waldman, has identified eight neuroscientific secrets of financial success that I will share with you today.

You can incorporate these strategies into your day to help you double or triple your income.

Eight neuroscientific secrets of financial success

Here are the eight secrets:

1. Just dreaming about your desires will not make them come true. You need to know WHAT motivates you to make money and achieve goals. What do you REALLY desire, and even more importantly, WHY?

2. You need to VISUALIZE the goal and then VISUALIZE the way to achieve it. Most people forget the second half of the visualization process.  According to Oettinger, you also need to visualize how you are going to overcome the obstacles that stand in your way.

3. You need to CRAVE the expected reward. Otherwise, you won’t be motivated to work for that goal.

4. You need to work MUCH HARDER AND LONGER than you are neurologically programmed to do. The brain is lazy so you’ll need to be creative to keep your energy high and your motivation strong. Achieving little successes through out the day will get you releases of dopamine that will help keep you motivated.

5. You need to train your body, mind, and brain, to work more EFFICIENTLY. This requires EXTENSIVE KNOWLEDGE of your field and your skills. If you don’t have the needed skills you must learn and acquire them.

6. You need to keep your STRESS levels low. This involves exercise, relaxation, taking pleasure breaks, and eating well.

7. You need to triple your OPTIMISM and interrupt your DOUBTS on an hourly basis.

8. You need a TEAM. Success requires colleagues, partners, teachers, and coaches…the best you can afford. None of us can achieve financial success solely on our own.

Next Steps

Again, what you need to do to make more money is simple. However, it is not easy and not everyone will take the time to make it happen. Spend a few minutes now and assess how you can use these neuroscientific secrets of financial success to drive your income higher.

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Turning Worries Into Solutions

Do you have worries? Undoubtedly you do. If you are alive, you have problems. We all do.  Are you interested in turning worries into solutions?

Of course you are. In this post, I am going to describe one of the most effective evidence-based strategies for dealing with negative feelings and thoughts that hold us back from realizing our goals and dreams.

This process is based on a decade of cognitive/behavior research and neuroscience. A majority of successful business people and entrepreneurs currently practice it.

The Three Step Process

Here is a basic three step process for turning worries into solutions:

1: identify a specific worry and write it down.

2: Reframe the worry as a real-time problem.

3: Ask yourself: “How do I solve this problem and overcome any obstacles that stand in my way?”

This allows you to create a PLAN you can set into ACTION.

Want to Take It to The Next Level?

If you would like to supercharge the earlier three step process, use the WOOP process based on the latest research of Gabriele Oettingen (Rethinking Positive Thinking: Inside the New Science of Motivation):

1. First visualize your goal or desire in great detail. (Wish or Desire)

2. Visualize in great detail all of the benefits if you achieved that wish/desire/goal. (Outcome)

3. Visualize and write down all of the obstacles that are stopping you from attaining that goal). (Obstacles)

4: Visualize a plan or strategy that will move you toward your goal. (Plan)

If you don’t have a solution, you’ll need new skills or coaching to see if your plan is realistic. If not, focus on a different wish/desire.

 

Are You Visualizing Correctly?

Many of us involved in personal development visualize our goals daily.  Our gurus have told us to do that for years and we have made it an important daily ritual.  But for many of us, visualization does not work or at least not like we have been lead to believe it should.

It turns out that visualizing your goal is only the first step.  Much more is needed. The newest research, spearheaded by the psychologist Gabrielle Oettingen, shows that you must do 4 types of visualization: Wish, Outcome, Obstacle, Plan.

She calls this WOOP and you need to do each visualization in the following order:

  1.  WISH:  First visualize your goal in great detail. This is essential.
  2.  OUTCOME:  Next, visualize in great detail all of the benefits you’d get if you achieve the goal. If you can’t do this, you may have picked the wrong goal.
  3.  OBSTACLE:  Visualize and write down all of the obstacles that are preventing you from attaining that goal. This is the most essential step that many people ignore or avoid. If you can’t clearly see all of the obstacles and problems involved in achieving a new and bigger desire, you’ll never find a solution.
  4. PLAN:  Plan a strategy that will move you toward your goal. If you can’t come up with one, ask for help, learn new skills, or change your wish. Once you have this plan, visualize yourself using it to overcome the obstacles you laid out in step three.

To appreciate the power of this simple technique, do it 2-3 times a day with small desires. Remember to visualize the obstacles and your plan for overcoming these obstacles. This is critical.

Also, don’t forget to take action and persevere. Your dreams won’t magically materialize! Visualization is necessary but not sufficient to achieving your goals.