3 Ways to Improve Your Mindset

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When I was just starting my entrepreneurial journey, I had no idea how much of a role mindset played in business growth and success. I truly thought it was just strategy that contributed to that–and that if I had the best systems, processes, and ideas in place, then my achievements would skyrocket. Sure, having a good strategy is important, but if you lack belief, trust, and confidence, you’re going to fall short of your dreams. It wasn’t until I realized that my self-doubt was the reason for being held back that I made the change to really improve my mindset and saw a noticeable difference from there.

A good example of this would be The Little Engine That Could, a small-engine train that was faced with the challenge of pulling a larger train up and down a mountain. While the small-engine train was pulling the larger train, it repeated to itself, “I think I can, I think I can, I think I can,” combining the actions of not only doing the work but also having the right mindset and truly believing it could happen, therefore making the challenge a successful one.

The same thing happens with reaching success as a business owner. Ultimately, if your mind isn’t in the right place, your actions will not be able to follow through on those desired results for you. In a simpler explanation, remember this equation:

Mindset + Strategy = Success

You can’t have one without the other. If you feel as though you have the strategy part down pat but the mindset component is really lacking, improve your mindset by following these suggestions.

Imagine You’re Already Living the Life You Want

I remember when I first started my business, I doubted everything and had a lot of negative self-talk. I found myself constantly thinking these statements, and many more, in my head…

  • “They won’t want to hire me.”
  • “This isn’t going to work out.”
  • “I don’t know how to do that.”
  • “This client isn’t going to want to work with me anymore.”

What ended up happening was those statements became true because of the fact that I already assumed they were. Because I doubted that a potential client would think I’m a good fit or that I had the right skill set to do something, I then approached those situations with that exact mindset: that I was going to fail! That meant that because I had such a negative outlook on the situation, the negative outlook ended up happening. I immediately doubted the outcome, which means that my actions reflected that, and I didn’t have the confidence of thinking that it could turn out in a better way.

Rather than assuming that something bad is going to happen and that things aren’t going to work out in the way that you want them to, imagine that you’re already living the life you want.

What do I mean by that? Telling yourself affirmations that confirm that good things are going to come to you.

Once I made the decision that I wasn’t going to talk negatively to myself anymore, I immediately saw a difference. Instead of being so harsh on myself, I started opening my mind to all of the opportunities that awaited me and spoke positively every single day with these statements:

  • “A new client is going to come to me this week.”
  • “I have plenty of money to sustain myself full-time.”
  • “I’m the best at what I do.”

The more I repeated these sentences to myself, the more I believed them… and the more these things really kept happening.

Whether you decide to physically write out these affirmations through journaling or you just say them to yourself out loud, you’ll find them coming true over time. It’s the exact same idea as the quote, “Believe you can and you’re halfway there.”

Live as if these things will happen to you… and then they truly will.

Stop the Comparison Game

The easiest way to fall flat on your face is to be so caught up in what other people are doing that you’re not even paying attention to what you are doing. If you’re always trying to chase after obtaining success the way that other people have, you’re going to miss the opportunities that really will bring you success… that are right in front of you.

In the beginning stages of my business, I was constantly obsessing over how other social media managers were running their business. I analyzed everything they did, like what they posted on social media, how they wrote the copy on their website, what worked for them in terms of getting clients, etc. I spent so much time trying to imitate their path to success that I didn’t even realize that my own, unique path to success was waiting for me.

As soon as I decided to stay in my own lane, it’s like everything fell into place for me. I wrote copy that came from the heart, I posted what I wanted to on social media, I found my own ways to reach clients other than the ways that I was “supposed” to… and the results that I always wanted started to pour in.

Instead of feeling like you need to do something the way that everyone else is doing it to become successful, think about how you can be different and get an even better outcome.

Show Gratitude Every Single Day

It’s extremely easy to feel bad about not accomplishing something you wanted to rather than feeling grateful for everything that you have accomplished. This is something that I’m still working on, but slowly getting better at, because, truthfully, having perspective is hard.

I remember one time, I didn’t reach a revenue goal that I wanted to reach so badly and falling short of that goal totally consumed my thoughts. All I could focus on was how disappointed I was instead of thinking about the bigger accomplishments I’ve had that truly mean so much from the big picture…

  1. Reaching my first 6-figure year when I was 21
  2. Taking my business full-time after graduating from college
  3. Paying off my student loan debt within 6 months of graduating
  4. Giving a TEDx talk when I was 22

And so much more. When you shift your mindset to think about the good things that have been happening rather than focusing on the bad, you’ll think to yourself, “Oh, that’s a totally small bummer in the grand scheme of things,” and you’ll move on with your day, feeling ready to tackle whatever comes your way next.

So, the point being with all of this, show gratitude for everything because the more you feel thankful for the life you live, the more amazing things will come your way.

Fostering the right mindset is absolutely a long-term game, but putting in the steps now to make it happen will bring you success for years to come.

Ashley Mason is a marketing consultant, speaker, and founder of both Dash of Social and Student to CEO.

Starting her business at the age of 19, Ashley successfully grew it to reach six figures by the time she was 21 and now works for it full-time. Since then, she has been featured in prominent publications such as TEDx, The Huffington Post, Thrive Global, SWAAY Magazine, and more.

Passionate about pursuing entrepreneurship at a young age, Ashley hopes to inspires others to take that leap, just like she did.

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