High Performance Mindset | Learn from World-Class Leaders, Consultants, Athletes & Coaches about Mindset - 457: Overcoming Negativity

Episode Date: September 30, 2021

Knowing doesn’t create change; it’s the doing that creates change. You may know about why we have negativity as humans, but you must put it into action to see the results. In this episode, Cindra talks about how negativity isn’t always bad – it can help us make good decisions and protect us. But many times too much doesn’t serve it. Savoring is one way to train your mind to see the good and the possibilities.    Power Phrase of the Week: “I savor the good to combat my negativity bias.”    Quote of the Week: “Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.”  Willie Nelson 

Hi friends, my name is Dr. Sindra Kampoff, a national leader in the field of sport and performance psychology. Every week I'm on the local radio sharing my top tips on exactly how to develop the mindset of the world's best so you can accomplish all your dreams. Get ready for a jammed packed episode focused on practical tips to help you get after your goals and step out of your comfort zone. Let's go. Time to check in with Dr. Sindra Kampoff. And Sindra, today we're talking about overcoming

negativity, which is, well, when you talk about, I don't know, maybe some things that have happened in recent sporting events or things in your personal life, we all have those negative things that happen. How do we stop looking at those things as such a negative? You usually start us off with a quote. I thought you'd like this one by Willie Nelson. He said, once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you'll start having positive results. I like it. So how do we start today? Well, you know, Lisa, I think most people know that they should talk to themselves powerfully, but it's really easier said than done. And a lot of people ask me, okay, so what role does negativity play in our life and why do we experience it? And simply put, we all have a negativity bias, which means we pay attention to negative events and information more than positive events and information.

Many times we can like seek out the negativity. And Cinder, why do we have this whole negativity bias? Well, it really does keep us safe. But yet it can protect us and prevent us actually from leading ourselves and others and just developing relationships. And actually, it can prevent us from taking risks to pursue our dreams. And the reason we have it is it's really evolutionary in nature. You know, at some point, Lisa, we had to fight animals to stay alive, so it was really life or death.

So our brain is really here to, you know, keep us safe, but not necessarily help us to reform our best or stay gritty or build our dreams. So that's why we really need strategies to combat this negativity bias. So how would you describe the negativity bias that we have? So I'd say like two things, you know, negative events and experiences are more quickly stored in our memory. And then these negative events linger longer than positive memories. So one of the ways that we can combat this is what I call the 12 second rule.

And it just means that we really intentionally hold into our awareness these positive events so that they move from our short-term to our long-term memory. So can you describe that 12-second rule for me? Yeah, it basically means, you know, holding this positive event in our awareness for 12 or more seconds. You know, for example, you could savor these small moments that maybe sometimes we take for granted, like let's say a smile from a family member, or some larger events that sometimes we don't always really store into our long-term memory. So for example, the way I do this is when I get an email after a great keynote I gave,

you know, I just take that into my awareness and just make sure it stores into my long-term memory. Or a client that I work with kind of describes the power of us working together. So I'm really intentional with storing that so that I'm building my own positivity. So how can each of us use the 12-second rule? Well, it really means, you know, taking into awareness or bringing your attention to the good. And this practice is called savoring in psychology. And it just means that we savor the good things and notice them and appreciate these positive events in our life. And it helps us develop this long stream of really positive and empowering emotions and thoughts. And it really does only take about 12 seconds. So that means, you know,

savoring, again, these small things, but these may be big things in your life to combat negativity bias. Cinder, do you have a final point for us today? Well, I'd say like knowing this doesn't really create change. It's really the doing that creates change. And, you know, we may know that negativity and why we have it and we might know that we have to combat it, but it's really about putting into action. And again, negativity isn't always bad. It helps keep us safe and protects us, but too much doesn't serve us. So one way that you can combat this negativity

bias is by savoring, like just noticing the good, bringing your attention to the good for at least 12 seconds to store it to your long-term memory. What is the power phrase to head us through the week? I savor the good to combat my negativity bias. Savoring the good and combating our negativity. Overcoming negativity, our topic today. Cinder, how can people get in touch with you or follow along with what it is that you're doing? Yeah, you can head over to DrCindra, C-I-N-D-R-A.com,

and you can find my book, Beyond Grit, and follow along with everything else I'm doing over there. Way to go for finishing another episode of the High Performance Mindset. I'm giving you a virtual fist pump. Holy cow, did that go by way too fast for anyone else? If you want more, remember to subscribe. And you can head over to Dr. Sindhra for show notes

and to join my exclusive community for high performers where you get access to videos about mindset each week. So again, you can head over to Dr. Sindhra. That's D-R-C-I-N-D-R-A dot com. See you next week.