When it comes to driving business success, nothing impacts business success more than the psychology of its leaders.
The chokehold on any business is not cash flow but the business owner’s limited psychology and skills.
Psychology is not a fixed character trait; it is more like a mental muscle that can be trained and strengthened. Just as you would develop a fitness plan to help you achieve your health goals, a plan for improving your psychological fitness will give you the leverage to achieve your business goals.
That’s where a coach comes in. A coach is someone who helps you get consistent results in a specific area of your life. A business mindset coach will help you get consistent results in your business by changing your psychology. With a solid plan, measurable goals and consistent accountability, they will close the gap between where you are now and where you want to be with your business.
Closing that gap and improving your psychological fitness starts with changing your state.
Change your state of mind to impact your life
The way that you think, feel and react as a business owner or leader directly impacts the success or failure of your business. This is your state, and you can shift your psychological state to maximize your influence and success.
Physiology
Here’s a secret: your physical state = your emotional state.
It’s that simple. Changing how you move will change how you feel. Even a few minutes of purposeful movement can help you to feel more confident and powerful.
We know that nonverbal communication, what we generally call “body language,” is an integral part of how we interact with others. A handshake, a hug, a frown, crossed arms or a cold shoulder are powerful forms of nonverbal communication that change how we think or feel about others.
Body language has the same significant impact on how we think and feel about ourselves. Changing your physical state can change your psychology and your life in meaningful ways.
Here are some ways you can shift your physiology to change your state right now, right where you are:
- Stand tall, shoulders straight, legs apart, chest open. Stand like you own the room.
- Breathe deeply—take and release three deep, energizing breaths. Feel the oxygen and power filling your body.
- Smile fully. Even if you don’t feel like it, faking a smile will make you feel happier.
- Move your body for 30 seconds. Move however you want, with purpose. You can dance, jump up and down, pump your fists or do jumping jacks.
- Notice how you feel, and lock in that state of certainty. This is your natural state of being. You are capable and powerful. Own it.
Focus
As we said before, emotions and thoughts are not just things that happen to you. Your emotions and thoughts, your state, can be trained like a muscle.
Your psychological fitness won’t change what happens to you or your business, but it will change how you react and respond to challenges. It will help you see challenges as opportunities, tackle roadblocks with creativity and improve your relationships with colleagues, employees and clients.
Like anything else, improving your psychological fitness requires practice. Shifting your focus is one of the quickest ways to strengthen your mindset.
Where focus goes, energy flows.
When it comes to your employees and your business, are you looking for the good or the bad?
Your team will respond to what you notice and reinforce. If you are quick to point out their shortcomings and flaws, they might make some changes but will lose confidence. Instead, notice and reward positive progress, innovation and ownership. Your team will respond with increased effort and productivity.
When you experience failure, and you will, focus on what you can learn from the experience and how that learning will translate into growth. Focus on opportunities and progress rather than the disappointment of a setback.
Meaning
So often, when leaders experience negative emotions such as fear, disappointment, annoyance or frustration, it is because of the meaning they assign to the situation. When you are feeling any of those negative emotions—feeling “stuck”—ask yourself what extra meaning you might be giving the situation.
For example, you might think, “This person isn’t producing quality work because they don’t care about their job,” or “I can’t get my business off the ground because I’m not smart enough.” Take a step back and ask yourself if these assumptions are actually valid.
By questioning the false meaning you might be assigning to something, you free yourself up to really understand a challenge and come up with a solution. Does your employee need better instructions or training? Instead of coming up with excuses, can you take responsibility and take action to grow your business?
Clarity is power, and true mental well-being starts with accountability.
Get results with the help of a coach.
Training your mind requires practice and consistent effort. Utilizing executive leadership coaching can accelerate your progress by keeping you accountable. Coaching is personalized and tailored to your own needs, but you can expect a coach to get you consistent results by doing these three things:
1. Create and implement a personalized action plan.
You can’t make progress unless you know where you want to go and plan to get there.
2. Measure your progress
You can’t manage what you don’t measure. It’s not enough to set goals. For meaningful change, you have to measure your progress consistently. This allows you to celebrate your growth and make improvements where needed.
3. Move past fear
A significant obstacle to progress is fear—fear of failure, fear of wasted time and money and fear of the effort required for progress. Fear can prevent you from taking action. A skilled business coach will help you move past fear and view challenges and failures as opportunities.
You can begin your leadership transformation today; all it takes to start is a simple shift in your psychology.
