“Our minds influence the key activity of the brain, which then influences everything; perception, cognition, thoughts and feelings, personal relationships; they’re all a projection of you.” —Deepak Chopra
So here you are; you have come so far. But, is this where you are going to stop? Or, are you ready to reach the next level of greatness? As you start out on your journey, here are five questions to ask yourself.
Who are you?
Not the ‘who’ that everyone has been telling you to be, but the ‘who’ you were before you started believing them. Who were you when you were a child, young and naive? Who are you when you are alone with your thoughts, where no one can see or hear you? If you want to get to the next level of greatness, you have to find who you are at your very core.
What stories are you telling yourself?
Are they the same stories that you tell the world? Where did they come from? When did they start? Who first told them to you? And, most important, are they true? The stories that you tell yourself will either propel you to the next level of greatness or serve as an anchor around your neck that will sink you. Make sure you are telling yourself the right stories. Word of warning here, don’t lie to yourself; find positive, inspiring, powerful stories that are true.
What are your strengths?
While it’s good to minimize your weaknesses, your energy is much better spent on building on your strengths. What can you do to become even stronger? Can you become a subject matter expert, the go to person in your area of strength? If you want to reach the next level of greatness you can’t be a jack-of-all-trades; identify your strengths and run with them.
What are your goals?
You can’t reach the next level of greatness by wandering lost in the woods. Get realistic about where you are and then visualize what that next level looks like. What does it feel like? Now, set some goals to get you from here to there. Not giant, overwhelming goals; set small incremental goals that serve as stepping stones.
Who do you need to become?
The answer to this question holds the key to all success. The person that got you here can’t get you to the next level of greatness. So, what kind of individual would be able to attain that level? What would they know? How would they act? Who would they spend their time with? What habits would they have? Well, if you want to get to the next level, you’re going to have to become that person. So, get busy.
The Key
You hold the key to getting to the next level of greatness. It’s inside of you right now. You’re going to have to do some deep, sometimes uncomfortable soul searching to figure out who you really are. Then, you are going to have to unravel years’ worth of stories to get to the bottom of where they came from and if they are even true. You are going to have to start telling yourself new, powerful, and positive stories. You’re going to have to dig down and identify your true strengths and then pursue these strengths rather than fretting over your weaknesses.
You’re going to have to figure out how you are going to get from here to there and set some goals to keep yourself on track. And finally, you MUST figure out who you need to become in order to reach the next level of greatness. Now for the catch, answering all of these questions, no matter how deep you dig and how honest you are with yourself will get you nowhere without action.
So, get out there and get going!
© 2016 Elizabeth Stincelli
Liz Stincelli is passionate about recognizing and inspiring the leader in each of us. She is the Founder of Stincelli Advisors where she focuses on helping organizations engage employees and improve organizational culture. Liz holds a Doctor of Management degree with an emphasis on organizational leadership.
Learn more about Liz by visiting her website, stincelliadvisors.com and connect with her on Twitter @infinitestin, Google+, and LinkedIn. You can contact her by email at stincelliadvisors@gmail.com.
Excellent article Liz! Thank you for kicking off my week in an awesome way!
Thank you, Cynthia!
Excellent advice, Liz! We believe what we think we should believe. We’re taught to be humble and not too proud, so we are reluctant to see ourselves for the exceptional individuals we are. I love your advice to minimize weaknesses. I have long thought that managers do a disservice to their direct reports when they do just the opposite. Instead of capitalizing on strengths and making them superior, people are encouraged (that’s the nice way of saying it) to put out more effort to improve in areas where they have very little ability. You remind us “you MUST figure out who you need to become in order to reach the next level of greatness.” Sometimes it’s OK to be exactly who we are right now because we are fulfilling our dreams – which may not be a lofty as someone else’s. That’s the beauty of recognizing our intrinsic value and being content inside our skin.
Jane, I absolutely love your take on this article!!! Cheers to you. 🙂
These are great questions, Liz. I particularly appreciated and resonated with questions 2 and 5, being a coach who works with mindset daily.
Here’s the thing. Regarding number 2, the stories we tell ourselves reflect our beliefs and our values; and our beliefs and values control and rule our lives. So we need to become aware of our stories, beliefs and values.
Regarding number 5, whenever we want to do something different in our lives, including growing a business, we need to step up and become a different person. We need to have tiny shifts in our thinking that ultimately add up to us being a more confident person who brings greater value to this world. And isn’t that what we’re all here for… to add value and create a better world?
Thanks for the thought-provoking questions!
I absolutely agree with you, Elizabeth. Thank you so much for sharing your insights on this article.
I love the idea of “Who do you need to be?” – the idea of consciously BECOMING a newer version of myself. This is powerful in ALL aspects of my life – and something I sometimes forget to ask myself.
I have to remind myself every day to think about the person I need to become to achieve my goals, Kim. Thank you for your input.
We always have somewhere we can grow. 🙂