Who hasn't looked at a successful CEO, winning athlete, or innovative entrepreneur and thought, I wish I was that smart, motivated, talented, or driven?
We tend to talk about high performers as if they were born that way, as if they possess traits that are unreachable for the rest of us. We use words like "genius," "prodigy," or "phenomenon."
But assuming that high performance is a natural trait reserved for only a lucky few people limits your own potential. The truth is that high performance is not a fixed trait. It is a trainable state available to anyone willing to do the work.
State describes your emotional, physical, and psychological condition. When you learn to master your state, you take control of your life, performance, and destiny.
The difference between peak performance and poor performance is not intelligence or ability; most often it's the state that your mind and body are in.
The three levers of state
You can't change your state through pure willpower alone. To master your state, you have to adjust the levers that control it. This "triad" of levers includes physiology, focus, and language.
Physiology
Changing your physiology is the fastest way to change your state. The way you move, breathe, stand, and use your voice signals to your brain how to feel. In other words, motion creates emotion.
This is one of the most powerful ways to master your state.
Do you want to feel more confident? Change your posture.
Are you feeling anxious? Deep breathing can calm the nervous system.
Are you preparing for a big meeting or a critical decision? Movement can shift your neurochemistry and bring you into a stronger state.
Changing your physical state by standing tall, pumping your fists, saying power phrases, or using deep breathing can break negative thought patterns quickly. It can prime your brain for confidence or creativity.
At Tony Robbins' Unleash the Power Within self-development event, you experience the power of physiology multiplied. When hundreds or thousands of people in the same room are moving the body, cheering, and altering their physiology to shift their state, the energy becomes undeniable. Immersion in that kind of environment can accelerate transformation because you are not just thinking differently. You are physically stepping into a new way of being.
