Day 4: ‘7 to Unstoppable’

Day 4: FACING YOUR FEARS

Welcome to Day 4 of ‘7 to Unstoppable’! Congrats on completing the first three days – consistency is so important if you want to build unshakeable mental strength.

Today, we will step outside our comfort zones a bit more. We are going to do that by diving into our FEARS.

The challenge today:

Identify TWO fears that you have. These could be fear of heights, fear of dogs, fear of crowded places, fear of public speaking, anything.

Now, do TWO things that will look that fear in the eye. 

For example, if you have a fear of crowded spaces, go to a flea market or an airport or a very packed bar and spend some time there. If you have a fear of dogs, go on a walk, and go up to the first dog you come across to pet it. If you have a fear of public speaking, ask your boss if you can give a 3-minute presentation at the beginning of the next meeting.

Everything you have ever wanted is on the other side of fear.

 

FACE your fears. PUT yourself in the place of discomfort. Stepping into discomfort is when growth happens.

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How did that feel? Leave a comment below and let me know!

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DAY 2: ‘7 to Unstoppable’

Day 2: The Mental

Welcome to Day 2 of the ‘7 to Unstoppable’ challenge! (Did you complete Day 1? How was it? Leave a comment below and let me know).

Yesterday you told your mind to focus so you could finish your physical feat. Today, we will be getting inside our own heads to master our emotions.

Today’s challenge:

Think of one of the wildest goals/visions you have had that you never pursued because you thought it wouldn’t work. The key here is to think of a big/crazy goal that you have had that you talked yourself out of in the past, because it was so crazy that you got discouraged (i.e. “that will never happen” / “I could never do that”). For example, it could be to start a crazy importing business, or compete in a fitness competition, or to publish a book.

As part of today’s challenge, think about this specific goal in depth.

Then take a pen+paper and make two columns. One the left column, write down all the reasons you told yourself why it will not work. One by one, make a list on the left column. Write down the details. For example, “that will never happen because I have no idea how to even start a business. I have never done it.” These are your FEARS you are writing down.

Once you are done, take a step back. We are now going to shift your thinking. Imagine that you are your own personal cheerleader or coach. This cheerleader and coach wants you to win. They are there to encourage you, show you why it IS possible, and they believe in you 100%. So step outside your own head and into the head of your cheerleader or coach. They want to see you succeed. They want you to win – to overcome your fears and make your goals happen. Take at least a few minutes to stay there mentally, and really step into the headspace of someone who really BELIEVES you can WIN and wants you to.

Now, go back to your list. Remember, you are still in that head space. So go to the right column, and beside each FEAR, write down your rebuttal. Beside each “I don’t think this will work because of X logistic”, write down why it WILL work, because you will do Y. One by one, work through your list, still being in personal cheerleader or coach mode. They have a insightful rebuttal / smart solution for everything.

Once you are done, sit back and go through the list again. Watch how your fears have vanished, or been turned into an obstacle that can easily be tackled with the right attitude. All you needed was someone to believe in you and show you HOW and WHY you can do it.

YOU are that ‘someone’ for yourself. Once you start to fully develop an inner voice that can act as your personal coach or cheerleader, you can always count on it to eradicate your fears. You will look intrinsically for strength or support instead of outwards. Extrinsic support in friends, family – no matter how reliable – is not always fully under your control. But your inner voice is there for you WHENEVER you call upon it.

Today’s challenge is the first one of a few where we will be strengthening your inner voice to call upon in times of fear and discouragement.

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Done with this challenge? How do you feel? Any insights? Comment below.

Feeling social media inclined? Tweet it out!

DAY 1: ‘7 to Unstoppable’ Mental Toughness Challenge

DAY 1: The Physical

Welcome to Day 1 of ‘7 to Unstoppable’!

The first challenge for ‘7 to Unstoppable’ will be a physical one. There are two reasons for this: First of all, physical challenges are MEASURABLE. Finishing through on a measurable first challenge will instill confidence in your abilities from the very start. Secondly, the most important part about this physical challenge will be conquering your mind that will say it is ‘impossible’ or ‘too hard’ or ‘not for me’. 99% of the people will be able to complete this challenge if you silence your mental nay-sayers and tell yourself you can. (And no, you are not that special 1%). Overcoming this challenge will prep your mind for the rest of the week.

The challenge below have been inspired by the rigorous training the US Navy SEALs go through.. during their very first week of training.

Ready?

You have THREE options. Pick any ONE:

Option 1:   500 push-ups

Option 2:   200 burpees

Option 3: BOTH (for the real go-getters)

If you are thinking “No way, I can’t even do 5 pushups!” or “I cant even do 10 burpees!”.. take a deep breath and quiet your mind. Kick your mental nay-sayers to the curb. Yes, these are SUPPOSED to be tough. Discomfort equals growth, remember? Here are a few suggestions that may help you do the challenge today:

• Break up the push-ups / burpees into multiple small blocks (20 at a time, for example), and spread it out throughout the day. Much more manageable that way.
• Put some loud upbeat music on and get at it!
• TELL yourself “I will do this today” and that’s that. Commit. Don’t overthink it. Do what you have committed.

The biggest hurdle is conquering your mind. Do that, and the body will undoubtedly follow.

Get to work!

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Leave your comments BELOW! I want to hear how you did!

Completed 500 push-ups? Tweet it out!
Completed 200 burpees? Tweet it out!

‘7 to Unstoppable’ – Mental Toughness Challenge starts March 30

Strength – any kind of strength – starts with the mind. If you master your mind, you can literally be unstoppable. Ask any Olympian, Ironman, Buddhist monk, or anyone accomplishing feats that seem near-impossible to the rest of us. Their response will be ‘Prepare your mind, and the rest will follow.’

At UnPsychology, we are all about bettering ourselves. We do this through continued education, reading, personal challenges, conscious self-improvement and pushing us ourselves outside our comfort zones.

Right outside your comfort zone is when growth happens.

On March 30th, I will be putting up a 7-day mental toughness challenge. It will feature one mind/body challenge every day that will push you outside your comfort zone. Not only will the challenges make you stronger day by day, it will also fill you with growing confidence regarding your abilities.

Remember: No discomfort, no growth.

 

If you are interested in the ‘7 to Unstoppable’ challenge, sign up below. You will get an email reminder the day before so you can mentally prepare.

 

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Podcast alert: Passion, creativity and trusting yourself to go after what you want

I was recently interviewed by Dave Cuda on his Journey of Ambition podcast. We had a really great chat about personal development, creativity, being multi-passionate and trusting yourself to go after what you want.

Click here to listen!

Leave any comments or questions about the podcast below!

What happens when the Head and the Heart find their sweet spot

The Head: The Rational. The calculated risk-taker. The responsible thinker who sees logic and values reasoning. Nothing can go wrong in their world because everything has been thought out umpteen times.

The Heart: The Dreamer. The spontaneous rebel. The creative, emotional feeler who sees possibility and values imagination. They go where their wild and carefree imagination leads them, with not a care about the process needed to get there.

So how do these two notoriously different ends of the spectrum find a way to work together? Why would the rational, calculating Head take into account the free, spontaneous Heart’s wishes and desires? Will they ever be able to work together? HOW would they ever converge into a meeting of the minds? Is it even possible?

Is there a sweet spot?

I am here to tell you, that yes there is.

Meet Danielle LaPorte. She wrote a book called the Desire Map which sparked a revolution of people digging deep to get in touch with their hearts and uncovering what makes them feel good. What makes them feel in tune with their true selves.

In other words.. the Heart.

I recently got licensed as an official Desire Map facilitator and I am getting ready to host workshops that will finally bring together the passion and the practical.. the HEAD and the HEART.

In these workshops we will be finding the sweet spot where we can work with clarity and ease, being true to both the Head AND the Heart!

My first workshop is going to be held in Calgary, Alberta Canada in April. Interested? Sign up here.

I will also be hosting VIRTUAL workshops from April through to May. Interested? Email me so I can put you on the list.

Out of curiosity, what was the conversation like in your house (growing up) around emotions and feelings? Leave your comments below.

This is very much worth remembering

It is easy to make someone feel insignificant, whether it is to create a false sense of self-importance or otherwise. But to be able to make another human being feel important, to make them feel like their views truly matter.. That is a very special gift.

After all, people will never forget how you have made them FEEL.

‘Core beliefs’ and how they shape everything about you

Yesterday I was having coffee with a friend of mine who is a teacher. She was telling me about this student she has in her class who seems to ‘always be in trouble’.

We have all known that guy/girl growing up, who just seems to always get in trouble. They may be up to no good perpetually, or once in a while, you will see that these people don’t do anything out of the ordinary, but get into trouble regardless. You feel sorry for them, they feel sorry for themselves, then everyone laughs and moves on.

But if you trace it back, there is a point where this started. There always is.

Take the student my friend was talking about for example. She took the student aside and they talked for a long time. Turns out, this student got ‘in trouble’ for the first time when she was in kindergarten. She had been sitting in class, zoning out into her own world, while rubbing two pencils together. Maybe she was thinking of the last Dora The Explorer episode she saw, or she was dreaming up a whole scenario of games she would play later with her friends that evening. But her teacher at the time suddenly noticed this little girl rubbing two pencils together, and raised an alarm. She thought the little girl was trying to burn down the school. Poor girl was taken to the principal’s office, sent home, and was suggested disciplinary action.

This occurrence obviously affected a 5 year old girl, because the message she got was that she got in trouble – for not doing anything wrong.

90% of a human being’s perceptions and beliefs are developed before they turn ten. So at the ripe age of five, this occurrence just got deeply entrenched in her brain, and became one of her ‘core beliefs’.

When you carry a core belief through to adulthood, a majority of your actions stem from that belief. If one of your core beliefs state that you are ‘generous and caring’, you will likely be in situations where your genuine care and helpfulness are frequently called upon. Because your core beliefs dictate how you BEHAVE, which in turn dictate the type of people you attract and the type of situations you create around yourself. If you grow up with a core belief that you are always ‘in trouble’, you will inadvertently find yourself in situations where you end up in trouble.

I always find it very interesting when some people say they got walked all over, and when you ask some more questions, you will find that they have a pattern of this type of behavior. Same goes for people who seem to just ‘win’ at everything in life. They are the ones that get the job, get the promotion, get the girl/guy, etc. It’s a pattern. And patterns stem from core beliefs.

Are there any patterns that you happen to notice in your life? Where do you think they stem from?

What happens when passion, potential, and purpose find their sweet spot

 

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Thanks for reading UnPsychology!

Do you feel like you are not living your life’s purpose? Know that you have a lot more to offer and want to make a real difference in your life as well as the lives of others.. but just have not yet figured out HOW?

Enter your email address below and I will personally send you a FREE copy of my ‘12 Questions to kickstart your internal purposefinder‘ right away.

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While you’re at it, feel free to check out some of my other posts on Unpsychology.

What type of thoughts occupy your mind?

Your state of being is a direct result of the type of thoughts that crowd your mind. So be certain to only carry with you positive, uplifting ones.

 

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Thanks for reading UnPsychology!

Do you feel like you are not living your life’s purpose? Know that you have a lot more to offer and want to make a real difference in your life as well as the lives of others.. but just have not yet figured out HOW?

Enter your email address below and I will personally send you a FREE copy of my ‘12 Questions to kickstart your internal purposefinder‘ right away.

Name

Email(required)

Submit

Δ

While you’re at it, feel free to check out some of my other posts on Unpsychology.