How are you going to be the best you can be in 2019?

For me this is predominantly focused on your mindset.

This critically is about how you ‘Think’ and how you ‘See’ yourself, others and your world. Unless you keep a strong focus on this to keep your mindset strong and positive, 2019 will fall short for you. I help leaders with this very area but also need to continually work on this myself.

In this article we are going to examine 4 areas:

Lifebuoys – what are the things you need to put in place as regular habits and your foundation to keep you in the best place both physically and psychologically?

Sharks – what are the habits, behaviours and thinking that can harm you? What do you need to change and avoid?

Clouds – we now turn to the destructive thinking that we can all be guilty of and strategies to intervene when this happens. These are the ‘Clouds’ that shift your thinking into negative areas.

Sunrays – what strategies and interventions do you have to handle negative thought patterns and perspectives? Your ‘Sunrays’ are the interventions that you use to burst through the clouds.

This is also explored in more depth in my latest ‘Leadership Mindset – Think, See, Do’ podcast episode.

You can access the podcast:
  • on iTunes here
  • on Stitcher here
  • You can also search for Leadership Mindset by Tony Brooks on podcast Apps which you can find on iTunes, Stitcher, podcast Apps
  • You can also find the podcast on my website by clicking here

A positive mindset for 2019

So how was 2018 for you?

I’m sure like me you had your ups and downs and twists and turns throughout 2018. Some external and, no doubt, many internal.

I’m more convinced than ever that your mindset is the most important factor to focus on to increase your success and happiness in what you do – work and personal.

Let’s explore the 4 areas in more depth to help you keep your mindset strong in 2019.

1.    Lifebuoys

What do you know that keeps you at your best if you build them in as regular habits and behaviours?

I am revamping and refocusing mine and they include:

  • Regular exercise and swimming
  • Dry January
  • Improved diet
  • Meditation
  • Journaling and capturing the best 5 things about each day
  • Reading
  • Connect with people
  • Reduce Phone and FB use

Resilience is often seen as how you react to difficulties, but I believe an even bigger part of resilience is how you prepare yourself in advance.

What are your Lifebuoys to keep you afloat in the turbulent waters that you may face in 2019?

2.    Sharks

Sharks are the things that can hijack you and take you down. The habits that can put you in a poor psychological state. They impact on your thinking and lead you to see things in a less positive light. What habits and behaviours do you have that cause you to perform below your best? They could be fuelling a low mood, negative thinking or worry.

For me these can include:

  • Too much time on social media (Facebook specifically)
  • Too much time watching the (mostly negative) news
  • Too much alcohol (especially over the festive break!)
  • Junk food
  • Too tied to my mobile
  • Too much caffeine
  • Procrastinating and putting off changes
  • Negative and destructive thinking

What are your Sharks that impact on your success, happiness and fulfilment? 

3.    Clouds

We now turn to the destructive thinking that we can all be guilty of, and strategies to intervene when this happens. These are the ‘Clouds’ that shift your thinking into a negative area:

For me these can be:

  • Fear
  • Anxiety
  • Worry
  • Lack of motivation
  • Procrastination
  • Self doubt
  • Self esteem
  • Overwhelm
  • Pessimism
  • Self deprecation

These are common negative thought patterns that cloud my thinking and I am sure you can relate to many of them.

What are your most common negative thought patterns that cloud your thinking?

4.    Sunrays

One of my core themes is about the battle between our ‘Potential Self’ and ‘Destructive Self’, and handling our destructive thinking is key in this battle.

Your ‘Sunrays’ are the interventions that you use to burst through the clouds.

Here is a taste of the strategies I use to pull myself out of a ‘thinking dive’: –

  • Raise my consciousness above my thinking and observe it to lessen its impact
  • Plan
  • Shift the language I am using
  • Look for a different perspective on the situation
  • Make a conscious choice to think differently
  • See the funny side
  • Journal
  • Have a solution for the feared outcome
  • Act

What are the ‘Sunrays’ that you can use to cut through those negative thought patterns?

Being much more aware of these 4 areas and making some positive choices will, I believe, bring out the best in you in 2019.

I invite you to take the time to listen to the podcast to go into this in more depth. 

Please feel free to give me a call on 07912 143040 or email me at tony@theleadershiptrainingworkshop.com and we can discuss how I can support your leadership development.