Empowerment: A Mindset Exercise by Francis Bills

Many of my talks and blog entries have had a few repeated messages. One of these messages is the message of empowerment.

But we don’t just learn by listening, reading and watching, we learn best by doing, by taking ACTION.

Therefore, I would like to share with you an exercise that I believe, if accepted and implemented, will empower you very quickly and more effectively than anything that you’ve ever tried or experienced regarding emotional freedom and personal empowerment.

I’m fully aware that this is a bold claim and it may raise some disbelief, but that’s ok because the thoughts of disbelief, or any belief for that matter, is evidence that our thoughts are the key to understanding, empowerment and everlasting change.

The original version of what’s called the “as if” exercise that I’m going to ask you to practice suggests to have the reader “suspend all disbelief”.

But in my adaptation of this exercise, I encourage you to recognize immediately any thoughts that come to mind; good, bad or indifferent.

The reason for this is that when we recognize what our thoughts, beliefs, opinions and emotions are toward a subject, we become better prepared to challenge and change them.

Let me say that one more time.

The reason why I am encouraging you to recognize immediately any thoughts that come to mind is because when we recognize our thoughts, beliefs, opinions and emotions, we become better prepared to challenge and change them.

So here’s the exercise. Be sure to take note of what you’re thinking throughout the day as you implement and experience this change in mindset in various situations and with different people.

Practical Exercise:

This is called, “The Responsibility Mindset” exercise.

Many of us are quick to take responsibility for what happens in our lives when we feel that things are going smoothly, but the key to the “responsibility mindset” is to accept responsibility for how we respond to life when we are faced with the appearance of insurmountable challenges and obstacles.

Are we quick to find a scapegoat? Are we quick to blame others, conditions or circumstances? Do we find excuses and alibis for not doing what we know we’re supposed to?

Do we find ourselves describing the perceived impediment to our success as, “they”, “them”, or any person, group, external organization or entity?

Starting right now, act “as if” everything in your life is the result of your action or inaction. This statement alone is sure to conjure up disagreements and arguments claiming otherwise. That’s good!

The objections that you come up with will allow you to identify your current mindset and how much responsibility you are currently taking for your life and actions.

For each area of your life that you feel that you are not responsible for, identify who and or what you are assigning the responsibility to.

Do you find yourself blaming past occurrences? Do you find yourself blaming other people? If you’re assigning blame to others, are these people still currently in your life or are they being kept alive by your thoughts toward them?

Are you finding a particular pattern of blame? For example, are you blaming your co-workers or supervisors at every job you have? Are you blaming others for not being good friends, partners or business associates? Do you find yourself placing blame on your husband or wife, girlfriend or boyfriend?

What is YOUR role in each of these categories?

It takes a great amount of courage to answer these questions candidly. I promise you that by doing this assignment and embodying the responsibility mindset, you’ll discover how much power you really have in all areas of your life.

Stick with this mindset. Exercise and implement it every day of your life and you’ll be amazed at the results that you’ll begin to experience.

This exercise is not for me to judge you or for you to condemn yourself or others. It is for you to recognize dis-empowering habit patterns, to address them constructively and to change them so that you are empowered to live the life that you truly want and are capable of living.

I want to be clear that the responsibility mindset is not asking us to take responsibility for the problems of the world, but to accept full responsibility for the matters that are within our control.

Matters such as our habits, our overall health and well-being, our wealth, our relationships with friends, family and loved ones, our business dealings, our communications with others, our own emotions and our emotional responses to the above-mentioned.

Accepting the responsibility mindset means that we hold ourselves solely responsible for our effectiveness or lack thereof in our communication with others, with our business dealings with others, with our health, our wealth, our happiness and our emotional and spiritual well-being.

Embracing and embodying the responsibility mindset removes the victim mentality and empowers us to take the lead in creating and living the life in which we truly desire.

Remember, we give our power away by blaming others or thinking that anything outside of ourselves is responsible for how we respond to what happens in our lives.

We strengthen and solidify our power by taking full responsibility for ourselves, our emotions and how we’re thinking about ourselves and therefore how we perceive others and the world around us.

Implement this mindset and be sure to document your thoughts regarding different areas in your life where you find yourself blaming things or people outside of yourself.

By accepting the responsibility mindset and experiencing it in your own life, you are empowered to direct and change your life forever.

You will never go back to blaming others unless you choose to, but at least you’ll know that it’s your decision to do so.

To your continual success,

Francis J. Bills

Premierconsulting.biz

fjb6@verizon.net

508-587-6710