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Mindset of a Creator: And vs. Or, How vs. Can’t, & Will vs. Want

listening to inspirational audiobooks in the park

While I wait for friend in Tel Aviv, Israel, I’m filling my brain with inspirational and educational material… always molding my mindset.

The secret to “success” lies between your ears.

I don’t care about how many formulaic, step-by-step processes you know of – If you don’t shift your mindset, you won’t shift your world.

Your internal thoughts and external words reflect your beliefs.

If you shift your thoughts and words, you can re-frame your beliefs.

You can remove the stagnant, archaic, disempowering beliefs, and exchange them for empowering, dynamic, and fluid modalities of thought.

See which category you fall into & if you need make any shifts, take note.

Weak Mind vs. Strong Mind

Why do so many people have such a weak mindset?

Do you think that will take them very far in life?  Do you think their weak-minded pessimism will lead to success?

You better wake your friends up, and tell them to get their shit straight, or just stop trying all together.

If you really want to design a life worth living, then you must adopt the Mindset of a Creator.

Weak-minded complainers use “or” thinking…

“I can either go to France this summer, or I can write my new business plan.”

“I can learn guitar, or I can take that new job”

“Happiness is more important than money.” (one is better than the other = or thinking)

Will-minded warriors use “and” thinking…

“I will go to Southeast Asia this fall, and I will finish my book manuscript.”

“I will learn Spanish and guitar, while I’m traveling in Peru.”

Both money and happiness are equally important.” (‘both thinking’ is powerful!)

Victims in life use “can’t” in their speech…

“I can’t get the money to buy into the new business.”

“I can’t learn copywriting and SEO in time for my product launch.”

“I can’t tell my family about my true desires.”

Victors in life use “how” in their speech…

“How can I get the money to buy into that new business?”

“How can I learn copywriting and SEO in time for my product launch?”

“How can I tell my family about my true desires?”

Can you feel the difference?

By saying the words “can’t”, both your conscious and subconscious brain shut down and stop looking for a solution.

Don’t buy into this victim mentality.

Victors have learned non-rigidity in their mindset.  Their brains are always open, searching for new and creative ways to find answers to their desires.  By asking yourself “how”, you leave yourself open to potential, open to possibilities.

Example of “how” thinking

In 2007 I needed a down payment for my first purchase of an investment property.  I found a bank to finance 75% of the purchase price, but I needed to come up with the other 25% in order to go to settlement.

There was one issue: I didn’t have the money yet. (do you see how the word ‘yet’ is very powerful in negated sentences?)

I wrote on a small piece of paper, “How can I get the money?“, and I stuck it in my wallet.

I left my brain open to the possibility that I could find a way.

If there is something you truly desire in life, there is always a way to create it.

5 or 6 months had passed by and then a roommate in college mentioned these things called private student loans.  Hmmm… “private student loans for real I estate”, I thought.  3 weeks after applying for the loan, I received a check for $17,000 mailed right to my door step.  With that money (and a few thousand dollars in savings) I bought my first piece of real estate.

What would have happened if I just said “I can’t get the money for real estate”?  I wouldn’t have continued to real estate books, I wouldn’t have gone to networking events (like meetup.com), I wouldn’t have talked about my goals with my friends, I wouldn’t have kept an open mind to the possibility that YES, I could buy a house .

I would have killed the idea before the potential could grow.

I bought that house in 2007, when I was 21 years old.  It’s a long term “buy and hold” and I rent the house to tenants.

my first real estate investment property

Me, standing on top of the first house I bought… happy I put that piece of paper in my wallet.

Will vs. Want

Watch what you say, for your words are only the reflection of your beliefs.

Here are some of my “goals”:

• I will be 100% “location independent” (business and income are not dependent on my location) and financially free (money works for me, and all income is “passive”) by my 31st birthday.

• I will fluently speak at least 2 languages within the next 3-5 years.

• I will be a centenarian (live to be over 100 years old).

• In late 2013, or early 2014, I will drive south from Mexico to Argentina (staying towards the west coast), then from Tierra del Fuego (southern point of Argentina) I will take a 2-day boat trip and visit Antarctica.  I will then head up north on the west coast of South America, and instead of heading back up to the US through Central America, I will depart near Venezuela and “island hop” through the Caribbean back to Florida.  By the time the trip is complete, I will have visited every county in Central & South America.

• I will direct and produce and inspirational documentary before my 35th birthday.

• I will grow a beard for exactly 12 months, and take a photo of myself everyday.

• I will travel to all 50 US states.

• I will visit every country in the world (currently 193) before my 60th birthday.

Okay, I could go on and on.  And I will, once I publish my “will list” on the blog, but I what I wanted to do was to demonstrate something.

How did it feel when you read my goals?

Did they seem hopeful.  Like, far off in the distance… like maybe one day they would happen?

NO.  THEY FELT FUCKIN’ SOLID!

All your goals and desire should feel like that!

It’s time to throw away they word “want” and tell the world (and yourself) that YOU WILL!

No more excuses.  No more bullshit.

Lets get serious

Life is fragile.  And life may be short.  It’s time to get serious with yourself and start to move the needle forward in your life.  It’s time to start shifting your mindset.

It’s time to start growing.

It’s time to remove old, limiting ways of thought.

It’s time to start working on yourself.

Take this post as a calling, a message.

START LIVING YOUR LIFE.

Don’t you want to be a REAL CREATOR ?

I'm a location-independent entrepreneur, passionate about life-long learning & personal development. Spiritual vantage point and a systems-thinker. Read more about me here: More details.

2 Comments

  • Nomadic Samuel

    October 3, 2012 at 5:21 am

    I agree with you that your thoughts and language you use are instrumental in helping you achieve your goals. When I used to tutor English in university, I could almost tell instantly which ESL students would learn well over the course of a year and which wouldn’t based on how clear they were with their goals, how committed they were to studying and how passionate they were about doing it consistently.

    Reply
    • Matt Horwitz

      October 3, 2012 at 8:34 am

      Hey Samuel! I’ve had really similar experiences with coaching or helping people, and right from the start – by the words that come out of their mouth – I can tell how much “work need to be done” lol.

      You’re website’s looking pretty good man! Where are you now? Still in Korea ?

      Reply

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