Do you have a vision of your book as a best seller? An award-winner? Many writers have these dreams, myself included.
You could write the greatest novel since Dean Koontz or James Patterson, but if you don’t market your book, you won’t accomplish best-seller status.
You could have the most amazing marketing strategy and plan, but if you’ve written a terrible book, you won’t accomplish best-seller or award-winning status.
And underlying all this is your mindset—your paradigm.
Do you believe in yourself? In your book? That you can accomplish your dreams?
You can have an amazing story and marketing, but you could be self-sabotaging your efforts to reach those goals.
I’ve written and published 5 books, but none have yet to win an award or to gain best seller status.
I know the major issue why I haven’t achieved these goals is because I haven’t had the right mindset.
Do you have a try or do mindset?
For months I’ve been examining my beliefs. I’ve discovered a lot of negative beliefs—lies actually—about my writing, my success, my personal life. Crazy stuff like “Why try? Someone or something will stop me,” and “if I’m wealthy, I’ll turn into a Scrooge,” and “if I make a mistake it will have major ramifications in the lives of others.”
I unconsciously formed these beliefs through what I experienced at various stages of my life. You formed your paradigm the same way.
The beliefs we have form the pattern or framework of thought out of which we unconsciously function. The decisions we make, we make from that paradigm. That’s why it’s important to know what we believe and that we replace any false beliefs with the truth.
Last week, I had a major shift in my paradigm that I pray will help you. It had to do with the verb try.
Merriam-Webster Unabridged Online Dictionary gives this definition of try: “to make an attempt to achieve something or to carry out some action” (emphasis mine).
“To make an attempt.” That’s exactly where my mindset was. I’ve been trying to achieve my goals, but I realized that underneath that verb try was a belief “I’m going to try, but I won’t succeed.”
There’s a Yoda quote from a Stars War movie that has surfaced in my thoughts at times. It came to mind last week and was the impetus of my shift.
This quote speaks to commitment. You’re going to do it and accomplish it, or not do it at all. But “to try” is to do something only part way. Your full heart isn’t in it. You’ll cease your attempt after hitting enough obstacles.
Realization struck! I’m where I’m at in my business (less successful than I’d like) because of my “I’ll try” belief. As I stood at my desk mulling over the recent complaints I had voiced to my writing accountability partner, I made a decision:
I’m done with trying; I’m going to do.
I physically felt different at a gut level after making that decision. My motivation and energy levels improved. The next day as I worked, ideas poured into my head, something that doesn’t usually happen. The thought of doing videos for my Unshakable Faith Leaders Guide (not yet released) no longer paralyzes me.
I am excited about the changes that are ahead because of this shift in my paradigm.
Has this same try mindset sabotaged you? Take some time in the next few days to sit quietly, without distractions, and examine your beliefs one at a time. Write down the false beliefs and then ask God what His truth says.
Feel free to return here and share in the comments what you discover.
(Whether you choose to use the Bible as your standard of reference from which to find the truth is your choice. However, do not use the standards of your society and culture—like sand on the beach they shift with every wave that washes in.)
Mark Virkler has an excellent book on healing false beliefs titled Prayers that Heal the Heart (affiliate link).