Mind training is about learning how to take control of your mind to u7lise it in ways that enhance performance outcomes. It is based on solid cu;ng-edge scien7fic evidence of what makes people consistently perform at their peak. It has its roots in sports performance but has increasingly been used in the business and corporate world.
Forward thinking companies are now turning to mind trainings to improve their bo@om line, because research has shown mindset to be the new psychology of success. Fortune 500 companies use posi7ve psychology, knowledge of human behaviour, neural and behavioural sciences to improve the way their employees think and behave at work. As Jamie Crosbie rightly a@ests: “organiza)ons are like a massive colony of ants”. They thrive or fail based on thousands of moment-to-moment decisions, ac)ons, and reac)ons. And it really all comes down to the way the individuals in the organiza)on think about themselves and their jobs”.
Within the contest of the current VUCA world of work, and the harsh reali7es within which employees now must operate, an op7mised mind is needed to enable sustained op7mum performance. Mind Op7miza7on is about building your intrinsic capaci7es to survive tough 7mes. To deal with the con7nuous disrup7on and high pace of change, people will need to be able to cope and adapt in many ways to be effec7ve; and this requires a balance of different personal and interpersonal competencies. For example, if an individual is not dealing effec7vely with pressure themselves, then they will struggle to support or lead others.
Here are our top 4 mind shiTing and op7mising strategies that we recommend to our corporate clients:
POSITIVE REFRAMING: Reframing is a strategy used to help adjust your mindset. It involves presen7ng an alterna7ve possible explana7on, interpreta7on, or percep7on of an experience. This new interpreta7on then facilitates a change such as a more posi7ve emo7on, leading to a more posi7ve outcome. One example of reframing is redefining a problem as a challenge. Such a redefini7on ac7vates a different way of experiencing. Problem has a heavy quality to it, while the no7on of a challenge is enlivening.
VISUALIZATION AND MENTAL REHEARSAL: A form of simula7on where a person imagines or envisions themselves going through the detailed steps of a processes or performing a skill, without physically doing it. It can happen unconsciously without pre-emp7ng or can be done on purpose. Visualiza7on breeds expecta7on. And when you expect the best, you release a magne7c force in your mind which a@racts the best to you. The brain is a pa@ern matching organ, what it visualizes, it wills the body to accomplish. There is a deep tendency to become what your mind pictures, provided you hold the mental picture strongly enough and the objec7ve is sound. Sustained expecta7on of the best sets in mo7on forces which cause the best to materialize. Visualiza7on enables you to focus on a future realiza7on. This expecta7on supplies fuel to the body
SELF-TALK is a psychological skill using the words that we tell ourselves to direct our focus, our thoughts, and our ac7ons to achieve goals or complete tasks. It can be planned or spontaneous, spoken out loud or in your head, posi7ve or nega7ve and developed by prac7ce. The effect of Posi7ve self-talk on performance is well documented, especially in sports. Mo7va7onal self-talk boosts confidence, self-esteem, drive, effort, and mastery. It can also help regulate anxiety and stress in high pressured environments. The body responds to praise by releasing the feel-good hormone: dopamine.
HOPE: Related to op7mism, hope is defined in psychology as the ability to plan pathways to desired goals, despite obstacles and the agency or mo7va7on to use these pathways. Hope in this term differs from lay person’s meaning of hope, and is ac7ve in nature, referring to the mo7va7on to use the ability to plan. Hope produces a strength of itself. When Cornell University in America conducted a study on the effects of hope, Dr Wolff reported that people with hope can endure incredible burdens and hardships. One group studied comprised 25,000 soldiers imprisoned during World War II. Subjected to forced labour, bad food and filth, many died. A handful showed only slight damage. Interviews with the survivors revealed a far above average ability to hope. When asked how they kept their hope alive, they said they were drawing pictures of the girls they planned to marry, designing their future homes, and organising business management seminars. Hope keeps you going amid debilita7ng circumstances. Mental rehearsal can help you build hope. Mental rehearsal can enhance your sense of control and ability to find pathways to a@ain goals. To develop hope, the focus needs to be goal se;ng and building pathways towards these goals.
Which strategy resonates with you? Which have you used in the past? It would be interes7ng to know.
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