How to: Relax and Boost Your Productivity

Psycho-Cybernetics: Part 3

Warning: Another advice that might better life!

In the second episode of my Psycho-Cybernetics blog-series, I summarized the chapter about "the truth about yourself" and how you have an installed servo-mechanism within you that depending on the data you feed it will work for or against you, and I further discussed the importance of using this mechanism to achieve any particular goal.

If you haven't read the previous episode, you can click <<here>>

THE SCIENCE OF CYBERNETICS

Psycho- Cybernetics, Maxwell Maltz

The science of Cybernetics does not tell us that "man" is a machine but that man has and uses a machine. Moreover, it tells us how that machine functions and how it can be used.

Even though it grew out of the work of physicists and mathematicians rather than that of psychologists, the new science of cybernetics made an important breakthrough in psychology possible.

Chapter 3. Freeing Your Creative Machinery

Do Your Worrying Before You Place Your Bet, Not After The Wheel Stars Turning.

In the chapter "Relax and Let Your Success Mechanism Work for You" of Psycho-Cybernetics, Five Rules for freeing your creative machinery are proposed that all, from a rational point of view make sense, but we are often too distracted to stop, realize and analyze where our feelings come from. I choose to present here the first and in my opinion most important point to realize and we should all constantly be reminded of.

If you can relate to the following, please continue reading: Feeling stressed out all the time, worried about events that haven't happened yet and anxious. Especially in the digital world and as an entrepreneur where you can work 24/7 for the rest of your life, this feeling of not having a enough time can lead to serious issues. One I personally had to deal with for a long time: Sleeping disorder. A commonly known reaction to stress, when your body feels exhausted, but your mind can't rest because you're stressed. And what I mean by stress is not stressful situations that are part of life, but legit an unreasonable constant level of unhealthy stress. It wasn't until I read this one (as always) obvious and simply logical piece of advice, that my mind understood that it could stop the worrying, relax and enjoy the ride... once a decision was reached, and hopefully it might help you if you're going through something similar...

The Art of Relaxation

Book Excerpt:

While I was playing roulette... I noticed any number of people who appeared not to worry at all before placing their bets. Apparently the odds meant nothing to them. But once the wheel started turning, they froze up, and began to worry whether their number would come up or not. How silly, I thought. If they want to worry, or be concerned, or figure odds, the time to do that is before the decision is made to place a bet. There is something you can do about it then, by thinking about it. You can figure out the best odds possible, or decide not to take the risk at all.

But after the bets are placed and the wheel starts turning—you might as well relax and enjoy it— thinking about it is not going to do one bit of good, and is wasted energy.

Then I got to thinking that I myself had been doing exactly the same thing in my business and in my personal life. I often made decisions or embarked upon courses of action, without adequate preparation, without considering all the risks involved, and the best possible alternative. But after I had set the wheels in motion, so to speak, I continually worried over how it would come out, whether I had done the right thing.

I made a decision right then that in the future I would do all my worrying, all my forebrain thinking, before a decision was made, and that after making a decision, and setting the wheels in motion, I would 'dismiss absolutely all care or responsibility about the outcome.'

Believe it or not, it works. I not only feel better, sleep better, and work better, but my business is running much smoother. I also discovered that the same principle works in a hundred different little personal ways.

For example, I used to worry and fume about having to go to the dentist, and other unpleasant tasks. Then I said to myself, 'This is silly'. You know the unpleasantness involved before you make the decision to go. If the unpleasantness is all that important to cause so much concern, and not worth the worry involved, you can simply decide not to go. But, if the decision is that the trip is worth a little unpleasantness, and a definite decision is made to go—then forget about it.

Consider the risk before the wheel starts turning!

I used to worry the night before I had to make a speech at a board meeting. Then I said to myself, 'I'm either going to make the speech or I'm not. If the decision is to make it, then there's no need in considering not making it

... or trying to mentally run away from it.

I have discovered that much nervousness and anxiety is caused by mentally trying to escape or run away from something that you have decided to go through with physically. If the decision is made to go through with it—not to run away physically—why mentally keep considering or hoping for escape.

This can be applied now to any situation, may it be social gatherings you don't want to attend, the gym you try to avoid, WORK you need to get done but continue procrastinating on... When you make the decision to go along physically, you might as well go along mentally—and dismiss all thought of resistance and you might be surprised to find yourself thoroughly enjoying it.