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Napoleon Hill, author of Think and Grow Rich, wrote, "Whatever the mind of man can conceive and believe, it can achieve." His book drew on stories of successful millionaires of his time to illustrate what he called the Law of Success.

He asked, "What makes a winner?" A winner requires a game to win. The game Hill focused on was the capitalist game of materialism and imperialism – the acquisition of more – without regard to its impact on others. He popularized the "ego takes all" approach to life.

We help our clients win the game by supporting their success in conceiving, believing and achieving. But is it true that we can achieve anything?

The answer is more nuanced than a simple yes or no. It is true that our beliefs create our experience of reality. They act as colored lenses in front of our eyes. We see and experience what we believe. These belief-lenses color our vision of who we are, what the world is, and our place in it.

Our beliefs determine our mindset, our self-image, our relationships with others, and our response to what happens. They also limit the opportunities we can see in front of us.

People once dreamed of flight, and our human ingenuity created a new form of worldwide transportation. People dreamed of automating menial and repetitive tasks, and we now employ robots who can work 24 hours a day without food, bathroom breaks or complaints.

Humans have also dreamed of a peaceful world; the end of hunger; prosperity and justice for all; and equal opportunity. We haven’t yet created those dreams. Are they possible? Yes, but it requires us to become unified in our vision and action together. This is "political will."

On an individual level, can you achieve anything you conceive and believe? Here, the answer is clearly NO. Otherwise, you would have already achieved it. Conceiving and believing take place in the mind, where our limiting beliefs live. Even with the best of intentions, a person with negative internal paradigms ("I'l never be able to do that ... It will certainly fail, so why bother?") will not achieve much.

What’s needed is a technology for clearing negative and limiting beliefs. Otherwise, your clients will continue to experience internal resistance and self-sabotage. If their inner landscape includes a big STOP sign, all of your cheerleading and guidance won’t get them where they want to go.

"Most people can’t get past their negative voices. Glorious plans fail because of this internal mechanism."

This is a little-known mechanism of the mind: whenever you make a commitment to something, or take a step forward, your old beliefs immediately jump up and re-assert themselves. Most people can’t get past their negative voices. Glorious plans fail because of this internal mechanism. It’s an  automatic function that must be understood, dealt with, and mastered.

The primary cause of going off course or quitting are internal limiting and negative beliefs. If you conceive and believe, you CAN achieve – but only IF you have a clear vision, an action plan, take the actions necessary, persevere, and clear beliefs that crop up along the way.

Published in choice, the magazine of professional coach. Used with permission.
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