The Circle Of Excellence

posted in: Coaching, Lisa, News

One of the many positives I’ve found since I started my NLP and mindset coaching accreditation is that each morning, I wake up to a social media feed filled with inspiring posts regarding success, a growth mindset, the importance of self-reflection and numerous other encouraging stories that help me start my day in an upbeat, optimistic and constructive manner!

We are all aware of the dreaded algorithm that social media uses to prioritize the content that users see in their feeds. In the simplest terms, past user behaviour, content relevance and the popularity of certain posts are all vital factors in determining what gets delivered to our feed!

This got me thinking, essentially, it’s my behaviour, at what I choose to view, comment on and post as opposed to breezing past that sets the tone and I’m in control of that to a degree. It can work for me in a negative or positive way.

I knew from my NLP training that the brain is like a computer, it absorbs information, processes it, and creates various algorithms that drive the behaviour that then shapes our identity. The information (input) is formed by external experiences we take in via our senses, which then create certain thought patterns, which then leave us in the form of our feelings and actions.

However, these default algorithms/ thought processes may not always work in our favour due to deletions, distortions and generalizations we make regards this information. Instead, we can create false assumptions & biases which prompts undesirable behaviour & actions leading to bad outcomes. The good news is we do not have to maintain these defective thought processes!

In the same way, as we can change the social media algorithm by what we choose to view and comment on, we can also recode our brain through good mindset training. This helps alter the thought processes you are running, giving you greater control over the outcomes you want and subsequently, your actions and experiences. The key is deciding what we input & how we harness this process especially when feeling challenged.

The circle of excellence is a fantastic technique for helping individuals feel more confident in tough situations. I used it with a group of riders this summer before embarking on a XC course.

Imagine a circle on the floor in front of you. Think of all your strengths, good deeds, achieved goals, lovely experiences & the associated feelings with them, pop them in the circle. Imagine all the colours, sounds, shapes and feelings building up as you look from outside and then physically step into the circle. Enjoy it for a bit and step out. Now imagine shrinking that circle down to the size of a ring and put it on a finger to be used whenever you need a confidence boost.

Remember, it’s your ring, your news feed & your life. You alone control the process & what you want to get out of it!