The Genius Belief System

In our earlier post, we talked about Napoleon Hill’s all time classic: “Think and Grow Rich” and its phenomenal capacity to inspire in us super human efforts and achieve the impossible. But such feats are possible only if we are ourselves convinced we can do them.

There is indeed genius residing in all of us but for the most part of our life we are not aware of this phenomenal blessing. Why is this? Is it due to our own belief system? Do we believe we are capable of great things and achievements? Do we believe in our own genius?

It is said that all great endeavors are born out of a dream, a burning desire, a passion, an obsession. In short, having a belief system. This is all about trusting ourselves and our abilities and while we may not be able to see the future right now, we are able to visualize it. Through effort, we then bring that visualization to reality.

But belief systems are like plant seeds which first need to be planted properly and then nurtured through their growth into beautiful plants. Ironically, we have ourselves established many hurdles in the way of creating and nurturing such a belief system.

The following are typical reasons for this situation and raises some questions we need to ask ourselves:
– Our Frenetic Lifestyle
– Lack of Reflection & Relaxation
– Are we clear what we want from life?
– Are we willing to sacrifice our present for a better future?
– Do we have a burning passion to go beyond our comfort zones?
– Do we want to leave a worthy legacy?

Our Frenetic Lifestyle
We are busy human beings. We rush from place to place every day carrying out our work responsibilities or even the personal ones without pausing to catch our breath.
We are fighting fires most of the time and have no time to address the systemic/long-term issues that need more attention. Dr. Stephen Covey, in his all time classic “The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People” calls it ” Sharpening the Saw.” This is the inclination and ability to pause, take stock and address structural issues rather than going through the motions of existence.

Our lack of reflection and relaxation
Our frenetic lifestyles give us no time to pause and reflect. We also do not get an opportunity to relax. Stress is baggage we carry throughout our waking lives.

When was the last time you had some time to yourself and you were completely immersed in doing nothing, just relaxing. In almost all instances, this is rare.If we never take time out for ourselves, how are we going to achieve things in life. We need to be clear where our destination is otherwise we will end up anywhere.

Resolve to spend a minimum of ten minutes each day all by yourself, in silence and just relaxing. After a couple of times of doing this, you will learn to begin to reflect on things in your life. Go on, try it out. It is therapeutic and you will definitely feel the relief washing over you.

Are we clear what we want from life?
When was the last time you set any goals for yourself in various aspects of your life: work, business, personal, health, dream, passion, lifestyle etc. Goals are powerful catalysts. They move us from the thinking phase to the action phase which is critical for any form of achievement. Moreover, goals through action cure our fears. For the most part, we are afraid of setting goals because of fear of failure. But it is better to set a goal and fail in achieving it in part (at least the effort was there) than not setting any goals or taking any action and wallowing in regret.

So, do this, if it is the only thing you will take action on. Write down your goals. Goals for the short-term like the rest of the current year, goals for the medium term like 1 to 3 years, goals for the long-term: 3 to 5 years. I can guarantee that once you start this goal setting process, you will find the motivation to keep it going.

Are we willing to sacrifice our present for a better future?
If we are fire fighting most of the time and have no time for reflection and relaxation and do not pursue goal setting, then we are placing the future at jeopardy. All of us have the mechanism built within us for success but to identify that and draw on that treasure trove requires commitment, effort and most importantly time. In a manner of speaking, we must commit to take some time out of our present lives to pause, think about the future so that we may craft that according to our dreams and aspirations.

When you commit to spending ten minutes each day in reflection and relaxation, you are sacrificing your present in a small way but critically to think about your future. Life is finite and minutes pass into hours and hours into days. The time for action is now.

Do we have a burning passion to go beyond our comfort zone?
Nothing great was ever achieved without effort. Thomas Edison the prolific inventor and a genius himself said: “Genius is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration.”

Do you have a dream? Are you passionate about something? Do you want to achieve something remarkable in your life? All of us do have dreams and are passionate about things and do want to be achievers. However, that requires dedication and single-minded devotion towards getting out of our current comfort zone and stretching ourselves. We have sought refuge in our comfort zone because it does not require much effort to keep doing what we have been doing. As a great personality once said: “if you keep doing what you have been doing, you will keep getting what you have been getting.” So, in order to really make extraordinary achievements, you have to come out of your comfort zone and challenge yourself to new horizons, new destinations and new perspectives.

Do we want to leave a worthy legacy?
Life is finite and time passes very quickly. Before we realize, we will be approaching the evening of our lives and during those times we will be left only with regret for not having lived life more fully than we did. This is that future that we did not think and plan about in our younger days. Moreover, do we not want to be role models for our children, our students, our friends and the world at large? It boils down to leaving a legacy behind which will live on forever.

Having asked ourselves these critical questions and given ourselves time for reflection, relaxation, goal setting, we are beginning to establish the foundation for that genius belief system.

At the end of the day, remember it is all in this belief system. If you crave for happiness, then first be happy yourself and then spread happiness, for happiness or for that matter anything that you have a burning desire for is a choice! Choose wisely! It is the only way to discover that genius residing within you.

Happiness is a Choice