On a Brilliant Thoughts Podcast, The Mindful 7, Tristan shares one of his favorite stories with us which leads to a discussion about the power of the mind. And what Tristan calls “The Mindful 7”. Let’s dig in. 

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“I Want you to lead your life with a goal. But if you remain too focused on the goal, then you will miss out on the real treasures of life. The truth is, life has no goal at all, other than to just experience it and grow with it every single day.” (From the “Purpose of Life”) 

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What is the Mindful 7

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#1 Self talk 

Self talk is the conversation that you have without yourself. It's a direct reflection of yourself. This is what creates most of the problems we have in life. We create our life from the inside out, whether it's positive or negative, and how we show up on a daily basis. Do we see opportunities or problems? 

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We continually tell ourselves what we focus on. So think of what words you use on a daily basis and the way you talk to yourself. 

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#2 The spoken language

The words that you use and the tonality in which you say it is very important. It not only affects us but the people around us - family, friends, spouse, or pets. Whoever you identify as your family. Pay attention to the way you speak to them. The spoken language matters a lot. 

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This is where you change the way you talk to other people. You must start avoiding phrases like ” I'm always like this” or “This won’t work here”.

We have to start identifying the pattern of the spoken language we use on a random basis. 

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It’s by default that we’ve done this and we’ve created this environment around us that helps keep this in place. I would recommend that you read the book “Supercharge your brain” by James Goodwin in order to get a better perspective on this. 

In the book, Goodwin explains that only 25% of our brain determines how it’s going to be. The rest  of it is determined by you. Your environment, what you feed it, and  how your body is doing.  75% is up to you. The spoken language is a part of it. 

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The key is making a habit about talking about the good things that are going well in your life. Do your best to not complain about all the problems that are going wrong in your life when someone asks how you are doing. You have the choice on what to focus on. 

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We are talking about you deciding on what to focus on during your day. 

Part of that is how you speak about it. We all have fear and anger and sadness. It’s a part of being human. 

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But if you spend your day talking about your problems, then your brain focuses on that for the majority of time. I want you to reverse that. Look for things that you have control over. Then you can decide on how you respond to that. How you speak and use the spoken language will create a mindset of abundance instead of fear or lack. 

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We have to learn to use fear to help us. It’s part of the process. Sometimes talking through it in a way that helps you see what you have control over it at the moment. What actions can I take? 

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#3 Reflect more often 

Reflect through the day and you become more aware of things. How are you treating people, talking to people, and going through the day as opportunities instead of problems? You create the reality that you live on a daily basis. Reflection is the key to becoming aware of what really is going on in your life. 

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A great book to read about mindset is “Mindset: The New Psychology of Success” by Dr. Carol Dweck. It’s about a fixed mindset versus a growth mindset and why it’s important to understand. 

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Take the time to reflect at the end of the day. You should know what to look for tomorrow so you don’t mistreat people going forward. Ask yourself: How to treat those closest to you? 

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#4 Continually keep learning and unlearning 

The key is surround yourself with people that can help your mindset grow. Do you want those same thoughts circling in your mind every day, every year? How are you going to progress? What can you be feeding your mind in order to do better on a daily basis? 

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Unlearning happens when you are doing things that aren’t beneficial to you. While learning something that makes you grow. 

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#5 Practice 

Doing things that are uncomfortable for you - that’s where you need to consistently live. That’s where fear comes in. “What if I fail?” is a common question. Sometimes doing uncomfortable things are just limited beliefs. The more you can continually learn and practice the spoken language - that’s where change happens. Change can really take hold of you. You began to look at the world differently and start finding opportunities. 

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#6 Prioritize the Big 3 

What are the Big 3? 

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Your self 

What are you feeding your mind constantly? Your body? Are you taking care of yourself? The spirit. And emotions. Those all fall under “self”, which is one of the big three. Take care of yourselves on a daily basis. This should be a daily thing so put it on your calendar. 

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Family 

Family looks so different to different people. It could be your parents, your pets, your spouse, friends or siblings. That has to be a priority for you. They have an effect on your mind. You must take care and maintain yourself in order to make your family a priority. 

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Business 

Whether it’s your side hustle or writing a book or your actual job, you must show up for your business, too. You have to take an internal look and see what you’re doing and what’s best for you and your business. How does that look? 

These are the three priorities. I want you to remember to prioritize those three things so you focus on the things that matter most. This is how you progress in life. 

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#7 Creating a routine 

You allow yourself to fall into a process that helps create a better you when you create a routine. 

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Jocko Willink wrote a book called “Extreme Ownership” which is a great place to start your journey in creating a routine. Willink gives you the formula for success by using the same mindset and guiding principles that enable the NAVY SEALcombat units to achieve extraordinary results.

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Where we want to go and how we show up in the morning and how we want to end the day is key. We all have habits that our environment has created that always don’t give us the results that we want. Habits create your life. But it takes time. 

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“The chains of habit are too light to be felt until they are too heavy to be broken." - Warren Buffet 

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In conclusion, you can change all of this and it starts with the mind. Scientists don't even fully  understand the brain - it's so complicated. The one thing they do know is that you can change habits and change yourself.  

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You have the ability for growth so change what you put into your mind. 

Really think through The Mindful 7. Awareness is where it starts. It’s up to you!  Change it for a better you.  

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