Back in high school, I read a book by Ben Carson on thinking big; it was really motivating as it helped me stretch my mind.
His mother never gave up on him. She trained herself to see beyond a fatherless kid in school who everyone thought was stupid and incapable of doing anything to ONE who could work harder than his peers and become a successful and renowned surgeon.
It helped me learn to set big goals, work on my limiting beliefs, and recognize the full potential of my life, even as a kid.
I’m not where I want or aspire to be, but I’m not where I was a year ago. Thinking big is like working on your mind and stretching it beyond what you thought was possible. But there’s a catch: never underestimate the importance of doing the small things that lead to progress.10 things to focus on while thinking big in 2023.
1: Focus on who you’re becoming
One of the most frustrating aspects of thinking big is when you don’t get instant results. But the result of stretching your mind is the transformation you get to experience. This used to be me. I was once so fixated on the end result of success that I lost interest in the journey.
What matters is what you become while striving toward something positive that you see as possible to achieve. Then you will begin to see that you can achieve far more than you ever imagined you could.
2: Focus on asking the right Questions
Amateurs are focused on having the right answers. Professionals are more concerned with asking the right questions. The right questions lead to bigger thinking, more discovery, and less ego, which are necessary for doing big things.
3: Stop playing small.
Thinking big is a game of the mind. Playing small often involves staying within your comfort zone, avoiding risk, and settling for less than you are capable of achieving. Thinking big, on the other hand, involves setting challenging goals, stepping out of your comfort zone, and taking calculated risks in order to achieve your full potential.
If you’re broke, you may have to work on your mindset and attitude toward work. The moment you start programming your mind for a wealthy mindset, you start taking steps to increase your income, and it won’t take long for you to catch up and earn 10x what you thought was possible.
4: Focus on progress over perfection
The highest achievers are focused on taking steps that lead to the outcome they desire, rather than just dreaming.
WIN SMALL TO WIN BIG
It’s not enough to dream big; you have to take small steps that can take you closer to your goals every day. Complacency is the most common source of suffering; I fell into it for a while and learned my lesson!
Sometimes all you need as motivation is to make your first sale. If you can make $100 from doing something, you can do the same thing ten times to get to $1k, then $10k, and never stop. Whenever any obstacle arises, I think of the long-term vision and goal. Anytime I face any type of fear, I think of the long-term vision and goal.
When I am running or weight lifting in the gym, I think of how it will feel once I accomplish my vision and goal. Successful people do the things that failures don’t want to do. They focus on the long term over instant pleasure. – Coach Dana.
When making plans, think big. When making progress, think small. – James Clear
5: Focus on your Dreams and your “why”
Thinking big can look and feel scary at times, but if you focus on your dreams and have big enough reasons to chase them, your fear will lose its power over you. Fear keeps us from thinking big by getting us to try to control situations and hold on to events and situations that don’t serve us.
Tim Ferris became popular for the phrase “fear setting.” Start practicing what you fear the most in small bits. Replace fear of losing your health with high-performance work (good nutrition, exercise, and rest).
Replace fear of failing with shooting your shots every day (you may be one call, one DM, one email away from the life of your dream)Replace fear of finding different opinions with becoming open-minded.
6: Take risks
Thinking big without making any effort is only mental masturbation. You got big dreams, but you waste it all on thinking and talking without action. Learn to take risks. There’s no reward in playing small. As Marisa Peer said: Belief without talent can take you further than talent without belief. But when you have both, you’re unstoppable”.
Learn more: Take risk while you’re young
7: Focus on playing the long game
There’s a quote: With great power, comes great responsibility. The result of thinking big is an opportunity for both power and responsibility which are not devoid of challenges. The way to keep pushing even when things get hard is to think long term.
8: Focus on making Impact
One benefit of thinking big is how much you become concerned with service and impact, as opposed to thinking of how you will look or if you will mess things up. Sometimes I think of quitting writing online, but then I see a post I wrote a couple of months ago go up in the rankings and show up on the first page of Google.
Imagine how many people could benefit from you without ever laying eyes on them. Here’s how Coach Scott Anthony related to speaking in public:
Focus on transformation you bring to other people – and not the fear you feel for yourself. One is serving and the other is selfish. Business is about creating impact. The bigger the impact – the more money you will make and opportunities will come your way. Serve – don’t Sell.
9: Focus on the Right Network
There’s a place for trying your best on your own, but then there’s more reward in interacting with people already where you want to go.
For me NotePD and Twitter have been my greatest opportunities for networking with bigger players in the game. Networking also gives us the opportunity to learn from others as well as potential collaborators.
10: Reassess your progress after a set period
To become a goal, whatever you want to do must have a timeline. And only by looking back can you connect the right dots and take better action. Planning ahead, setting daily and weekly goals, and making sure we allocate enough time for rest and reflection can help us stay on track and focus on our goals.
11: Bonus point: Focus on Creative Problem Solving
Thinking big necessitates problem-solving abilities as well as the ability to think outside the box. Identifying and analyzing potential solutions, brainstorming ideas, and staying open-minded will help us think BIG and come up with creative solutions.
How would you think outside the box in 2023?
CONCLUSION
The size of one’s achievements will always be capped by the size of one’s vision.
Think big. Play big. Win big. Make the most out of all the opportunities out there 👊
I got attracted to tech from an early age getting close to my Father. Coupled with learning some high end skills i was able to build a 6 figure Ecommerce store a few years ago after graduating from Pharmacy.
The only way I have found to express myself as an introvert is through writing.
I’m convinced 100% that to build a 6-7-figure business and beyond you need to invest in yourself and your personal development.
The more you grow, the more your business will grow.
PS: I wrote a short book on why you don’t need more motivation and how to push through in such moments – get it here:
Love it! Stop playing yourself small when you have the know how and experience.