THE WINNING MINDSET

 THE WINNING MINDSET

I have noticed that the problem with most students is not necessarily that they don't study,but there is a tweak in mindset that they need to have to always come out successful in every examination. I hope this article provides you with that tweak in mindset as you read through.

"When you settle for less,you get less than you settle for" -Pastor Sola Olabiyi

My spiritual father once gave me an illustration that when you settle for average in an exam,you just set the highest mark to be that average. Let me explain better. In an exam where the highest attainable mark is 100,when you decide just to get 50 and you'll be fine,you just made 50 your new 100,so with the same energy you could have used to get the 100,you dissipate the energy trying to reach 50, and most often than not,you never reach 50,you actually get 25 or 30,the average of what you set out to get. So when you settle for less,you get less than you settle for. 

I read a book a while ago,titled "An enemy called average" by John Mason, it's a compendium of truths that will combat any mediocre mindset. Before you prepare for the next exam,what about deciding to go for the best in that exam? Take some minutes and have a goal for the exam,don't go into any exam with a neutral mind,a "whatever happens happens" mind. Decide on what you want to happen.

There's a popular quote that says "aim for the stars,so that when you fall,you can land on the moon". I ask myself, why do I even have to fall? You don't need to fall. You can aim for the stars and hit the star,but at least aim for the star. One reason people don't choose to go for the best is because of a distorted picture of themselves that they have believed over the years. This picture could have been formed by former teachers,friends,society,past failures or anything. This distorted picture of themselves and their capacity keeps them limited and unable to reach out for the best. There's a silent voice in their head telling them that they can't have straight As in that exam. Something tells them they are not capable enough. Something tells them that there are smarter students in the class and there's no way they can stand a chance of being the best. 

This article is only an introduction to the Winning Mindset,subsequent release would talk about how to deal with preconceived notions of failure and how to build a valid and true perception of oneself as a success. You want to follow this series on Winning Mindset, it'll change your life.

Let me leave you with this quote by William Hazlitt "As is our confidence,so is our capacity"

We used to think our capacity should determine our confidence,but our confidence can actually have tremendous effect on our capacity. We probably have come across videos on the internet of a chicken trying to attack a dog or a smaller animal trying to protect itself from a larger one and interestingly, the larger one backs down for the smaller. How you see yourself matters a lot. Choose to see well!

Thank you for your time.