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Name of author Rick Baker, P.Eng.

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Putting Einstein's insanity-definition out of work

by Rick Baker
On Dec 6, 2013

Sure, we are struggling now. Regardless, we can put Einstein's insanity-definition out of work.

So many business people have a self-defeating attitude about change. I hear them reciting Einstein's definition "Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results." Yet, despite that knowledge they are set in their ways. They repeat the same mistakes. And they complain while they are repeating mistakes.

Resistance to change causes business tires to spin on the spot. Those spinning business tires dig deep ruts. It seems that people often give up rather than fight to get out of the ruts. In the heat of the daily business battles people seem to forget about trying new things. Instead, they lamely plod along doing the same old things that didn't work the last time.

Needless to say, they experience first-hand Einstein's insanity-definition.

Sometimes when this happens they get angry. When they get angry they apply more force...trying to head-butt their way through obstacles and other people. Of course, this approach rarely works. And, it generates new problems that show up as new ways to fulfill Einstein's insanity-definition.

How might one avoid the insanity trap Einstein warned us about?

Here's a suggestion...

Start by considering how your Self-Image and your Self-Esteem affect your Mental Attitude toward the 'outside world'.


 

And consider:

Your Self-Image - How do you see yourself? 

Do you see yourself as Attractive? Ugly of flawed?

Do you consider yourself Courageous? Fearful?

Do you believe you are Intelligent? Weak-minded?

Do you feel Energized? Lazy?

Do you find yourself to be Honest? A con artist?

Do you feel Healthy? Sickly?

Do you feel Strong? Weak?

Do you see yourself as Talented? Incompetent?

Do you see yourself as Organized? Scatter-brained?

Do you feel Blessed? Deprived?

Do you see yourself as Tolerant? Intolerant?

Do you feel like a Victim? A Victor?

Do you see yourself as Creative? Boring?

Do you see yourself as Flexible? Set in my ways?

Do you feel like a Winner? Loser?

Do you see yourself as a Self starter? Unmotivated Procrastinator?


Your Self-Esteem - Are you worthy?

How do you score yourself on a 1-to-10 Scale where a score of "1" means you are totally worthless and a score of "10" means you are as worthy as a person can be.

Your Mental Attitude - How do you view and approach the outside world?

Are you a Positive person?  Negative?

Are you Optimistic? Pessimistic?

Are you Trusting? Sceptical?

Are you Curious?  Close-minded?

Are you Hopeful? Disenchanted/disillusioned?


When you give it some thought - when you slow down and take time to give these things some thought - you will know you can do your part to put Einstein's insanity-definition out of work.

Thought Tweet #878

by Rick Baker
On Nov 27, 2013

Thought Tweet #878 With habits playing such a huge role in our lives, why are they so often left to chance?

 

The Thinking Behind The Tweet

What force enables habits to roll right over willpower?

For those who believe in evolution...Why and how have habits adapted and risen to such a position of power and influence?

Or, is that looking at it backwards? Are we witnessing an evolutionary battle between habits and willpower where willpower is slowly but surely gaining ground against [the more-primitive and firmly-established] habits?

Thought Tweet #868

by Rick Baker
On Nov 13, 2013

Thought Tweet #868 You ever notice nobody ever walks up and asks you, "What do we want?"

 

The Thinking Behind The Tweet

People ask us, "What do you want?"

They do that when they are seeking the common ground, "What do we want?", "What are our shared wants?"

But, they never ask the simple question...they only know how to go about it the hard way.

Tags:

Questions?: The Art of Asking Good Questions | Thought Tweets

Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, No [...and now...likely...it's over!]

by Rick Baker
On Oct 30, 2013

Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, No       [...and now...likely...it's over!]

The Art of Good Questions is about asking questions that bring about 'Yes' answers.

Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes, Yes.

What a fine string of 'Yeses'.

Then...

...'No'.

And, with that 'No'...'Yes' is likely over...resistance has kicked in...the other person is now either turned off, wanting to escape or ready to fight your every move.

There's a fine, sharp edge between 'Yes' and 'No'. That edge cuts quickly and deeply when you cause a person's thoughts to pass from the 'Yes' side to the 'No' side. Once the other person's thoughts are on the 'No' side, the constructive part of the conversation is over and irrecoverable. This is one of the reasons Constructive Criticism is an Oxymoron

When you criticize people you trigger their 'No' responses....and, at that point, constructive communication is over.

Sure, you may be able to present immaculate logic to try to extract the 'No' mindset from the other people...but remember, your chances are about the same as those of an unskilled rider trying to control a rather-out-of-sorts elephant.

Sure, you might try apologizing and asking to start over...if your trust bank account is flush with relationship assets then you may be able to pull that one off.

And, sure - the other person may be one of those exceptional people with thick skin...but, as you know, that's not very likely.

Thought Tweet #847

by Rick Baker
On Oct 15, 2013

Thought Tweet #847 "You must let go of your attachment to success to attract success." Good Advice - Yes or No?

 

The Thinking Behind The Tweet

Napoleon Hill taught we must have a burning desire and a clearly defined definite purpose in life. [Seems to me he would vote - No]

Joe Vitale teaches Yes [in fact, that's a quote from his 2009 book 'The Attractor Factor']

It's not an issue of The Power of Positive Thinking [Norman Vincent Peale]. Both Hill and Vitale embrace the concept of The Law of Attraction. However, their approaches to it differ in many ways. The Law of Attraction means different things to different people.

When it comes to positive thinking, abundance thinking, and The Law of Attraction - dogma and over-zealous claims trouble me. 

Believe what works for you. Understand your limitations. Package your messages with care.

Tags:

Abundance | Questions?: The Art of Asking Good Questions | Thought Tweets

Put your foot down...say "No" to "No"

by Rick Baker
On Oct 15, 2013

Beliefs: some good, some not-so-good

Beliefs intertwine with perceptions and patterns in your brain. Then beliefs manifest their influence, acting as your 'internal filters'. These filters guide your view of the world. These filters guide your behaviour. Your beliefs become deeply-held in your subconscious mind. From that strong base, your beliefs generate your habits…some good, some bad. Your beliefs determine your appetite for new things, your attitude toward change, and your ability to replace bad habits with good habits.

Do you know the true nature and depths of your beliefs?

Have you taken the time to 'dig deep' and understand your most-powerful beliefs?

These beliefs, your strong-and-deeply-rooted beliefs, govern your life: deep beliefs are the roots of your greatest joys; deep beliefs are the roots of your darkest fears.

Your deepest and most-strongly-held beliefs aid your efforts toward certain goals while they resist your efforts toward other goals. In these ways, your beliefs are fundamental to your life. They are fundamental to how you feel during your life and they are fundamental to whether or not you achieve the success you desire.

Where did your beliefs come from?

When it comes to questions like this, all of us are students. None of us know with certainty why or how we have beliefs. Yet, certain things make sense to us. As examples:

·         We perceive things and our perceptions of those things are taken to our brains

·         Our brains file vast amounts of information in memory, for future reference

·         Our brains like to simplify our lives so they sort things into patterns/concepts

·         With repetition bits and pieces of information solidify into bigger pieces and then into patterns

·         Diversity of perceptions expand and complicate perceptions, building a hierarchy of sorted/related patterns [and concepts]

An illustration...

When we are infants we hear our parents say the word "No". That's an audio perception. As our parents repeat the word "No" we learn "No" is an important part of our lives. Simple repetition of that spoken word causes neurons in our brains to construct deeper "No" pathways. Recognizing the importance of "No", our infant brains begin to build a "No" pattern. Our infant brains quickly pick up diverse perceptions that will feed into the "No" pattern. A parent may show an angry face while saying the word "No". The visual body language signal and the verbal sound signal send 2 separate messages, both of which feed into the growing "No" pattern in our infant brains. We notice/perceive that different situations precede our parents’ "No" messages. We perceive more diversity, more repetition and the "No" pattern becomes stronger, deeper, and more-nuanced. Even as infants we have a very broad and deep understanding of the word “No”. We recognize its sound, we recognize what it looks like when it is written, we recognize the facial expressions and the various forms of body language that accompany the word “No”, and we know the word “No” is expressed to us as a result of a wide range of different situations.

We learn our parents are not the only ones who deliver "No" messages to us. Other family members, to varying degrees, deliver "No" messages. We meet neighbours who have little people of their own and both those neighbours and the toddlers they bring into our lives add more "No" to our perceptions.

Why all this discussion around the word “No”?

That question begs the questions…

Do you understand how the pattern/concept “No” has fed negatives into your belief system?

Do you understand the extent the pattern/concept “No” throttles your efforts toward your desired goals & success?

Do you understand how to go about repairing the damage the word “No” has done to you belief system?

Are you willing to make an effort to find out?

Copyright © 2012. W.F.C (Rick) Baker. All Rights Reserved.