Highly Successful
Sitting in my doctor’s office, (yes, an in-person visit) looking at the TV on the wall, tuned to a news channel, something interesting caught my eye.
Did you know that more than 20 million Americans are millionaires? That works out to about 8% of American adults who have enough assets to fit that definition, according to the Global Wealth Report 2020 by Credit Suisse.
These fascinating facts, got me wondering what the difference is between a highly successful person and someone who is floundering in life.
At home, I researched this fascinating topic and came to this conclusion. What appeared to make them different begins with just an idea. A single thought. When this thought is nurtured, it is allowed to grow into something much bigger. It becomes so big that it influences that person’s behavior and outlook. This one idea when pushed forward spurs them on toward achieving their goals. That single thought, when allowed to grow bigger, helped them to succeed, and to live more fulfilling lives. Remember, these are just my observation and opinion.
Learning to live the best life you can have requires boldness of thought and big ideas that push you to your highest achievements. No person who has ever achieved great things was content with mediocre goals or run-of-the-mill dreams. They dreamed big and therefore were able to achieve great things.
Dreaming Big Motivates You
With big dreams come a positive way to think about your future, which can lead to feeling more motivated about what lies ahead. Thinking big about possibilities for yourself makes you hopeful in ways that setting your sights lower cannot. When you have something, you are looking forward to, it motivates you to work a little harder, think a little more creatively, and want to get up and try each day.
You Gain Confidence
Having big dreams and thinking more significantly about your life can help bring you more confidence. When you set your sights on lofty aims, you feel powerful knowing that, when you achieve them, you’ll realize something wonderful. And as you start to make progress toward your big dreams, you’ll know that your hard work is paying off, which boosts your confidence more.
You Learn to Invest in Your Own Success
When you dream big, you open up innovative ways of achieving your dreams as well as new possibilities that you likely never considered before. You also learn to invest in yourself the necessary resources for achieving these big dreams.
When you are optimistic about your future and your ability to succeed, you realize that, if you want to achieve significant things, you have to prepare yourself for the challenging work it is going to take to get you there. Invest in your knowledge and skills, invest in your health and well-being, and invest in your life in ways that make it possible to not only dream big but to achieve much, as well.
So how do you live and be the best person you possibly can be? Habits. You have to develop the habit of the mindset of thinking bigger.
Thinking big isn’t just about setting lofty goals. One big idea isn’t enough. You have to manifest that one big idea in many different ways, allowing it to gather momentum from other habits of mind and thoughts. Lofty ideas need other practices to help them come to fruition.
To think big about your ultimate dreams and goals, you have to also think big about:
- Your daily aims, tasks, and routines.
- Your ability to solve problems and analyze information.
- Your ability to think outside the box.
- Your ability to imagine possibilities.
- Your ability to be valuable to others.
- Your contribution to others and the world in which you live.
- Your ability to overcome challenges and obstacles.
Your life’s purpose.
When you want to learn to think big, it’s not just about one idea or thought. It’s about everything you think, all your goals. You must think bigger about your perspective, possibilities, and desires. Thinking big requires throwing off the shackles that limit your ideas and ambitions.
And doing this can allow you to learn, stretch, and grow more in essential ways that push past your current limitations. Here are some habits of mind that can help you develop these new ways of thinking.
Consider Solutions, Not Problems
When you think big and set your goals high, you have to think in terms of solutions, not problems. Solution-oriented thinking will provide you with ideas and answers to the many obstacles and challenges you will face along your journey. And the bigger your thinking, the better you will become at thinking outside the box to find ways to reach your goals. Solution-oriented habits of mind require you to ask the right questions, which can expand your possibilities and open your mind up to alternative perspectives, as well.
Always be Curious
Curiosity is a habit of mind that is indispensable for learning to think big. Thinking big is very difficult when you limit your perspective to what you already know. But, staying curious, asking questions, and always wondering “why” is an excellent way to continue to grow and set your sights higher.
Curiosity enables you to wonder what things would be like if extraordinary things were possible. It allows you to see possibilities where others see challenges. And, it keeps you wondering if there is something bigger and better on the horizon.
Remain Steadfast in Your Beliefs
If you want to live life thinking and living bigger, then you need to believe unquestioningly that you can achieve what you want in this world. When you believe in your big thoughts, you can envision them coming true.
When you can visualize it happening, you can do things to make it happen. When you start to take action, lofty ideas become possible realities. And through it all, it’s your belief in this reality that will keep you moving forward.
Be Proactive
If you want to think bigger, you must become a forward thinker, always considering what’s ahead. This habit of mind allows you to be better prepared for obstacles, to meet challenges head-on, and to know that your end goal is possible.
Thinking several moves ahead gives you the time to prepare for what you need to be able to do, and it means you understand what it will take to accomplish your goal.
Embrace Your Fears
Thinking bigger means that you let go of limitations that could be preventing you from reaching loftier aims. Fear is a strong limiting factor that can keep you from dreaming big. Learning to embrace your fear and recognize that being fearful is a sign that you are about to do something truly amazing will help you push past that limitation and move forward with confidence.
Big thinking about significant ideas can help you lead a better life. Only by embracing big dreams can you ever hope to achieve something significant. But thinking big isn’t just about having one big idea. It’s about cultivating habits of mind that allow you to solve problems, see the big picture, think into the future, and find the right support for achieving your goals.
Learning to think big can help you achieve your dreams and help you change your life as well as the lives of others. Only with practice and commitment, though, will you nurture your mental habits to learn to think bigger, live better, and be the best you that you can be.
Using the definition of a millionaire set out in the report by Credit Suisse, I can count on one hand the number of millionaires I know.
Odds are you know at least one millionaire.
“Life isn’t about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.” George Bernard Shaw
Meditation is a habit that may come easily to some. I have been meditating for over five years, but there were many days I found myself slipping. These days, not so much, not since I completed the no-cost Action Habits Challenge by Connie Ragen Green, Wall Street Journal and USA Today bestselling author, independent publisher, and serial entrepreneur. You can check it out here.
If you’re interested in revitalizing your life through meditation and would like to learn a virtually risk-free, and cost-effective practice, that people of all ages can do with a little patience and guidance and that will serve you for the rest of your life, I would love to connect with you. You can connect with me here.
I’m Donna SLam, who loves to blog about how meditation brings self-compassion, peace of mind, and clarity to my life and others by sharing tips and strategies on how to live a fulling and purposeful life. I enjoy championing others to lead a healthy and happy life through meditation, walking, self-development, and spending time with loved ones.
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