This Mindset Rest Is Your Unfair Advantage

By Les Mottosky

There's an old cliché: "The mind is an excellent servant, but a horrible master."

A modern version might use the analogies of a rockstar flight attendant and a horrible pilot.

That's because most of us spend half our day on autopilot. Psychology calls this the default mode network. We don't direct our thoughts and by default, they direct us. This influences our beliefs, feelings, attitudes and actions.

Inherently there's nothing wrong with this. Until it impacts our effectiveness and the quality of our results.

Our ability to adapt comes down to one concept: being deliberate. That's the insight, but how do we do it?

Here's a three step short-cut:

Awareness & Disruption

Notice the thought, belief, or reaction running automatically.
Pause and disrupt the pattern (breath, journaling, physical break, naming the thought).
Without this, the old script runs unchecked.

Reframe & Reorient

Challenge the thought: “Is this true? Useful? The only perspective?”
Replace it with a more effective or accurate interpretation.
Anchor the reframe in purpose or desired outcome (in other words: what matters most right now).

Integration & Practice

Reinforce the new frame through repetition and small actions.
Use cues, habits, or rituals to wire it in (gratitude practice, visualization, deliberate self-talk).
Over time, the reframe becomes the new default.

The most difficult of these steps is the first: awareness and disruption. (Without it the other two can't happen). Like a fish in water, we don't question what we swim in. And humans swim in our thoughts.

To "do" awareness and disruption, it helps to take frequent micro-pauses during the day. The key? Develop the habit of building in short “pattern breaks”: a deep belly-breath before answering, or a 30-second pause between tasks. Some people use physical or environmental cues like doorways or thresholds to a new room.

These small check-ins create the room to notice what’s running in our head instead of being dragged by it. A micro-pause during a moment of uncertainty or stress provides an opportunity to identify the thought behind the emotion, put the breaks on it and re-consider it's impact. Then we can get on with finding a new way to perceive the moment.

Great leaders have internalized the mindset reset. That's why we might perceive them as being the proverbial 'calm in the eye of the storm'. This ability gives everyone around them an advantage.

Make the mindset reset a daily practice and we can learn to avoid the storm.

In fact, we fly high above it.

Best part? No pilot – automatic or otherwise – is necessary.

TAGS: #Minding The Mind #Leadership Wisdom #Adaptation As Innovation #Human Humility #Change Is Our Nature

Les Mottosky

Adaptation Strategist // I help organizations turn creativity into their competitive advantage by aligning leadership, culture and strategy to unlock adaptive innovations.

Ask about the Clarity Engine Process.

lesmottosky@mac.com

https://www.linkedin.com/in/les-mottosky-9b94527/