I read an article today by Dave Smith, Inc. on Tim Sanders’ new book, “Today You Are Rich”.  Tim is a former Executive of Yahoo!   One area he touches on is confidence.  He describes it as a “lifestyle design principle that has to do with the information you put in your head, the conversation that comes out of your mouth, and your thoughts and deeds.”

I like this.  Confidence is what you hold in your mind.  Why not clear your thinking and get everyone else’s thoughts out of your mind?   We might feel confident one moment then hear news that the economy is tanking and suddenly our energy has dropped, our confidence is gone and we have succumbed to a reality created by the media.

In his book Tim tells success stories in which the entrepreneur disregarded the doom and gloom that was in the air and moved forward confidently.  I use the term “in the air” to refer to whatever idea or energy most people are latching onto at the moment.

Here is one of the stories he tells.  Remember the Sony Walkman?  What a success story!   Apple decided to ignore the economic realities (the dot-com bust) and move forward with their idea to replace the Walkman. It seemed unimaginable then Apple came out with the iPod and changed everything at a time when the economy was crashing.  That’s confidence.

As an intuitive business consultant the most common factor affecting business owners is confidence.  It is so easy to be knocked off-center by a thought, someone else’s thought, a feeling, a disappointment, news, whatever is in the air, etc.  The key to success is to confidently move forward.

“Success isn’t really a destination, because you’ll never get there. Talk to anyone with millions or billions, they’re always thinking of the next thing. Success is a direction, and that direction is forward.” Tim Sanders

Intuitive Exercise

Here is a simple intuitive exercise you can do when your confidence is shaken.  Try it.

• Take a moment to meditate.  This means to sit quietly with your eyes closed.  Take a deep breath and release.  Allow yourself to quiet your body and clear your mind.
• Place attention on yourself.  Take your attention off everyone and everything else for a few minutes.
• Now lift up your head.  Really.  Physically lift up the top back of your head so that your spine is long. Feel it stretch.  In this way your spine is long, energy centers are aligned and suddenly you feel differently.  More confident.  More certain.
• Now imagine in your mind’s eye, feeling confidence, how you plan to move forward, the step’s do you want to take, etc.  Don’t be afraid to take bold steps and to get out of your comfort zone.

Do this as often as needed to sustain your confidence.  Being a business owner is a rocky and exciting road.  Enjoy the journey and success.

Kay