Mick Unplugged - Ravinder Taylor Reveals Simple Tools for Self-Empowerment and Mental Growth

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Starting point is 00:00:56 Learn more at Amex.ca. Have you trained your brain to do all that it can do? If not, this episode is for you. We are here with brain training expert, Revender Taylor. She's going to give you a bunch of techniques, a bunch of sources to push you through the limits so that you can be the best version of yourself that you could possibly be. Without further ado, this is Revinda Taylor. Ravender, how are you doing today, Derek?

Starting point is 00:01:25 I am great, Mick. Thank you so much. And what a lovely introduction. I appreciate it. Thanks for having me on. Absolutely. I am honored to have you here. Ravender, you do a lot with mind training, with personal development.

Starting point is 00:01:42 So I'm honored to have you here on the show. And I always like to start with my guests, with understanding what's their because, what's their purpose that keeps you doing what you do to help so many people. So, Revender, what's your because? today? Why, because? I think I've always believed that I was capable of more, but I was also aware that I was full of insecurities and inadequacies, especially as a child. I grew up in England. We were the only brown family in our city, actually, almost. It felt that way. So there were always, there were always differences you know and it was there was an attitude back then particularly

Starting point is 00:02:29 that if you didn't do it the British way that was wrong and so I was constantly and I always had these inadequacies but I always knew I always knew that there was something more and so I've been striving to to learn more about that and they do say you teach what it is that you want to learn so I want to learn how to become fully myself, not a copy of somebody else, not puppeted by other ideas, not pushed around because of the, I think I should, I ought to, you know, all of those kinds of things. I wanted to become fully myself. And that's what my journey has all been about. And that's precisely what I try to teach. No, I love that a lot. I love that a lot. And you talked about

Starting point is 00:03:18 realizing that you were capable of more. And I want to go a little bit deeper. there, because I think if we're all honest with ourselves, right, like we are capable of more. And I think a lot of times when people think of more, they think of physically. But I like to think of it as mentally as well, too, right? Like you are capable of thinking more. You're capable of pushing your mind to the limit. So when did you realize that you were actually capable of more? You know, Mick, I think I could have come into the world having that in the back.

Starting point is 00:03:52 As I said, my childhood was full of inadequacy, so I was constantly hearing around me that what I did wasn't right, the way I thought wasn't correct, everything was just wrong about what I did, and there was a part of me, yes, it had an influence on me, but there was a part of me that said, no, no, it isn't necessarily so. one of the core teachings that I have in my life as a result of that, because there's always good things that can come from bad situations. There's always something that you can learn from it. And so for me, one of the first things that I decided was there aren't rights and wrongs. There are just differences. Now, I'm not talking about the big moral questions. I'm talking

Starting point is 00:04:47 about things like, you know, there are some people who cover their head when they go into church and there are others that uncover them. There are, you know, those kinds of things. It's like these things don't matter. We're all human beings. If what we're doing is out of respect, out of care for somebody else, then that's the part that should be appreciated. And that's how I try to treat other people. If I meet people and they do things differently, it's like, okay, what's the intent? What's the intent? That means a whole lot more to me.

Starting point is 00:05:23 No, absolutely. For the person that's watching or listening to this, and they feel like, you know, I hear Reventor talking now, and I do think I'm capable of more. What are some things that they can do to identify what that looks like for them? That's a big question, Mick.

Starting point is 00:05:44 That's a really, really big question. there. I think we are all capable of more. There are many people who aren't aware of that. They think they are just the way they are because of their genes, because of their upbringing, because this is how God made them. I would tell everyone out there, no, you are capable of more. You're capable of expressing your full potential a whole lot, a whole lot more. I would say, look at yourself, look at where you are, and I'm not only talking about finances and career and education, I'm talking about the kind of person that you are, the kind of relationships that you have. Can you be a better partner? Well, I think, Mick, we can all agree that

Starting point is 00:06:35 we can all be better, better partners. But it's that journey, is that constant striving to do better you know to be a better partner to be a better parent to be a better friend those are the things that really matter and then when it comes to your your career don't think that you have to accept just where you are you can go further if that's what you want you know i'm not trying to tell someone what that what they should do if you are happy in your life appreciate that That's great. That's wonderful. But if you feel like there is more, you want to push yourself more, you want to experience more, you want to learn more things, then don't allow others ideas. Don't let somebody else tell you, no, that's all you can do or you don't want to try and run a marathon. My gosh, you haven't run in for forever. And that's a personal example of mine because I did run a marathon when I was 55. I hadn't run for decades prior to that. But it was like I actually had a friend who had done this.

Starting point is 00:07:52 And that showed me that it was possible. And so it was just an experience that I wanted to have and I grew to love running. I fully intend to do more marathons. They are just, they take a great deal of time. And so I have to prioritize all the other things in my life. but to push yourself more, to experience more things, you only have one go-around in this life. You know, perhaps there's reincarnation, perhaps you get, but we don't have control over that. What we have control over is this life right now, and I'm into maximizing it, enjoying it,

Starting point is 00:08:31 experiencing it to the best of my ability. And most importantly, I don't want to be the one holding myself back because there are beliefs in my subconscious minds that I didn't put there, but that are controlling me. And that really comes to the crux of the whole mind training process. I like that. And I want to go into some of the mind training techniques that you've established and that you're doing now. Let's go with the book. So talk to us about, you know, why now with the book, right? And then what are some of the key aspects that we can pull out from it? The Twisted Tale of Amanda Knox is an eight-episode Hulu Original Limited series

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Starting point is 00:10:11 There is lots in mind training that you can pull out. The full title is mind training, the science of self-empowerment. And that says it all. It is very science-based. I actually draw on about 200 independent research studies that were done. I draw on those to create the tools and techniques that I recommend in mind training. But the empowerment, the self-empowerment part was really, important to me. So often, you know, you can have teachers that, you know, specialize in personal development and they give out recipes. They say, do this, do this, do this, and you will get what you want. They don't tell you what the purpose is behind each of these techniques. They don't allow you to understand it and personalize it and make it your own. And then when it doesn't work for you, they just tell you, you didn't do it right. And I didn't want that. I don't like that.

Starting point is 00:11:20 So I wanted that the self-impoundment part was really important to me. So in mind training, each chapter, I will go through the science. I provide lots of examples. I don't just draw on one or two. there'll be research studies done in different places in the world that reinforce the basic concept. But then at the end of each chapter, I will provide a summary for why I shared that information, why that information is important, and then I provide tools and techniques that people can use to put into practice right away what it is they have learned. There's two kinds of

Starting point is 00:12:05 Knowing. You can know something on a superficial level and you can know something so deeply within you that it becomes habituated. And that's what I wanted mind training to do. The tools and techniques are frequently very simple. But first you have to understand why they're important. Otherwise you'll just dismiss it. You won't see the consequence of it. You'll say, oh, that's just airy, fairy nonsense. So I wanted to say, why? it's so important. I wanted to explain how the elements work. And then I wanted to empower you to make it part of your day-to-day routine. That's amazing. Can you give us an example? So from the book, could you give us a case study and talk about the science behind it? Any chapter, your choice. I'll pick one of my favorites. And it's actually a bit different. difficult because it is so simple, Mick. It is so incredibly simple that if I just give you the bottom line, people aren't going to do it.

Starting point is 00:13:16 It's like, okay, okay, that's just more airy, fairy stuff. But the benefits that come from smiling, okay? When I first encountered the idea that putting a pencil between your teeth will cause your brain to release an energy. which is one of the happy brain chemicals, I thought that was crazy. Absolutely crazy. But I dug in, and yes, that is absolutely true. But then you want to look at some of the other evidence out there. There are two research studies that I really appreciated totally independently. One looked at baseball cards and one looked at high school photographs. And looking at those pictures, the researchers,

Starting point is 00:14:05 were able to predict how long the person would live. So what they found was that in these pictures, if a person had a small smile on their face, they would live on average two years longer. If they had the big, broad Duchenne smile, the Dushain smile is the one that reaches up to the eyes, gives you all those laughter lines. If they have the full Dushain smile,

Starting point is 00:14:34 then they would live on average. seven years longer, smiling, the Dushan smile, diaphragmatic breathing. These are very mechanical ways to get your body more relaxed, to reduce the stress, to increase the happy brain chemicals. I've tested this on myself, Mick. I'm very skeptical, so I try everything out for myself. So there was a period in my life. Generally, I've always had really good blood pressure. But during COVID, my brother passed away, which was traumatic. I couldn't be with him. But then there's all the other traumas that surround, that can surround you when someone passes away. There's arguments over the world. You see the greed and be, there were just some

Starting point is 00:15:23 really ugly stuff that went on. And I'm aware that lots of people have these experiences. At the time, I thought it was just me. It's like, how can people be so awful? But anyway, as a result, my blood pressure went out. It's the highest it's ever been. It went crazy. So I tested out both the smiling and the diaphragmatic breathing. Diaphromatic breathing.

Starting point is 00:15:47 If you put your hand at the bottom of your rib cage and then breathe in and feel your lungs expand, feel the ribcage expand and come up, that will expand the diaphragm. And it's a bit like having a big stretch. I mean, try it for yourself right now, Mick. Take a big deep breath. Feel it. And there is. It's a bit like a yawn or a big stretch. You just, you feel good right away. So I tested both of these. I took my blood pressure. The numbers were high. I turned the blood pressure cuff off. I put on the big Dushain smile. Fortunately, I was all by myself. So there wasn't anyone. to see me looking silly, put on the big DeShane smile, did about three big diaphragmatic breaths, slowly, evenly, just allowed myself to enjoy that, the stretching of the diaphragmatic muscle,

Starting point is 00:16:43 took my blood pressure again, my blood pressure had dropped 30 points in a matter of minutes. Now, it's not going to stay there. It's not going to stay there for forever, but the more you can remind your body how it is supposed to feel, the quicker it is to achieve that state again. And then you realize that when you're going through your day, if you're feeling upset, you're aware that being upset will raise blood pressure, you know, having the stress chemicals in your system just isn't good for you. It's not good for your immune system, not good for your health, not good for anything. So you can just do this, just walking down the stairs, put on a smile, take that big

Starting point is 00:17:34 diaphragmatic breath, release it, release that tension. And the proof is in the pudding. You get to see that. But it goes even further, Mick. Because when you look at optimism studies, they found that more optimistic people will live longer, have better relationships, be better off financially, better off in their careers, they're better parents. It goes in every single direction just from being optimistic and smiling and optimism. You know, one is going to be a belief in the future, but the other just

Starting point is 00:18:19 reinforces it. So when you're smiling and you're thinking about your future, it's easier to feel positively about it. And there are other techniques in my training where I explain how to increase your optimism, because some people are just naturally pessimistic. Yeah, yeah. And we see that a lot in business and in life, right? Like I talk about adjusting your circle or your tight-knit group and community because just like optimism spreads, well, so does pessimism, right?

Starting point is 00:18:54 and that energy that you receive can be the difference of, man, I need to do some stretching. Like Ms. Reventer told me, right, I need to bite on the pencil and smile because I've got this pessimism around me. So I love the fact that you were talking about that. And I know that a lot of that comes from your work with the progressive awareness research. Talk us a little bit about some of the things that you are doing with that company. Progressive Awareness Research is all about researching tools and techniques to enhance the quality of someone's life. The main product that we sell are the Inner Talks subliminal programs, subliminal self-help programs. Now, I'm aware many of your listeners could say, I've heard that subliminal doesn't work.

Starting point is 00:19:49 We commonly hear subliminals don't work, they're dangerous and they're being. used anyway. Primarily, they're being used by advertisers, marketers, the medias, politicians. They all use it. If it didn't work, why would they use it? Why would they invest so much money in it? This episode is brought to you by Square. You're not just running a restaurant. You're building something big. And Square's there for all of it. Giving your customers more ways to order, whether that's in-person with Square kiosk or online. Instant access to your sales, plus the funding you need to go even bigger. And real-time insights so you know what's working, what's not, and what's next.

Starting point is 00:20:36 Because when you're doing big things, your tools should to. Visit square.ca to get started. If it doesn't work, how can it be dangerous? And there is an entire appendix in mind training where I go through the history of the controversy. behind subliminal information. And you actually see that big money has a great deal of power. So those people who want to use it against you have every incentive to make you believe that it doesn't work.

Starting point is 00:21:11 For us, though, bringing it back to the positive perspective, we have all of these beliefs in the subconscious mind. Research shows that most of our decisions come from the subconscious mind. Our subconscious mind is a repository of all of our experiences. And because we have a negativity bias, we hold on to those negative experiences a whole lot more. So every time someone told you you're not capable of something,

Starting point is 00:21:42 there it goes into your subconscious mind. Everyone, every time you've experienced this idea of you don't deserve any better, there it goes in the subconscious mind. And research has shown there is activity in the subconscious mind up to seven seconds before you consciously make a choice. So technicians looking at the equipment in some of these research studies, the choices are really simple. Do I press the button with my right hand or left hand?

Starting point is 00:22:14 That kind of simple. And technicians looking at the equipment could tell you, up to seven seconds earlier, what it is you're going to choose, even before you've chosen it. So the information is coming from there. And that is what guides everything that we do. So if your subconscious mind is full of negativity, we talk to ourselves all the time. And so just think about it, Mick. On a bad day, if you're feeling depressed, that self-talk, that inner chatter that goes on nonstop is going to go on the lines of I hate my life I can't do this nobody likes me I don't deserve it anyway you cannot just replace that with positive affirmations

Starting point is 00:23:02 positive affirmations are good it's good to surround yourself with positivity but telling yourself I am good cannot detract from that subconscious um idea when someone had told you you're disgusting you can't do anything you're stupid you're dumb there is pain that comes when someone says that and all of that is locked away in the subconscious mind now with the inner talks of liminal programs the affirmations are presented in a way where it bypasses your conscious defense mechanisms so for me if i say to myself i am good immediately i have have this whole stream of chatter. I'll try to keep it brief for you. Because I have an idea of what does good mean? I'm not really good because I was short with my husband. I was impatient

Starting point is 00:24:02 with my kids. I didn't give my dog enough attention. But then it goes even further. What does good mean? Just because society thinks something is good doesn't make it so. And the biggest examples there, of course, I'm going to be black slavery. Society thought it was good. Society thought that was normal. Thank you, no thank you. I have another example of my own from being brought up in England when I was young, when I was in elementary school. So I'm talking about between the age of six and eleven, anti-gay jokes were so normal. Homosexuality was derided so badly that kids in the playground were making these jokes. That is what society was telling us is good.

Starting point is 00:24:58 So as I said, my conversations get really deep because I say, okay, what does good mean? Because society says it's good doesn't mean that it is. And because I missed those things back then, what am I missing today? So there's a huge debate that goes on in my mind from an affirmation like I am good but when you don't believe in yourself you put a cap on everything that you can possibly achieve

Starting point is 00:25:29 when you don't believe that you can succeed at something you will not try your hardest at doing it so the inner talk subliminal programs the affirmations are presented subliminally And just to explain how that works, have you ever been in a party, say, conversations going on all around you, you're engrossed in your own conversation, and then someone across the room says your name and your ears prick up. Your subconscious mind did hear it. You just weren't aware of it. Another example of that can be, have you ever been out in a store and then you start

Starting point is 00:26:12 humming a song to yourself only to realize that's the song that's being played in the music system in the background yeah you just automatically repeat it so with the inner talk subliminal programs you don't hear the affirmations consciously so you can't object to them you can't fight back against them they go in go in directly and just like the music in the store you start repeating them. So back to the example of being depressed. If that self-talk is saying, I can't do this, I suck, I'm no good at this, if that gets replaced by, I'm good, I've got this, life is good, people like me, you can't be depressed at the same time when your self-talk is positive. So in a nutshell, that's what we do, progressive awareness. And that's the

Starting point is 00:27:09 And that is just one of the tools and techniques that I discuss in mind training. I love it. And I want to make sure that everyone can get a copy of this book. So, for Vendor, where can we get copies? You can buy. Where do you want us to get copies? Wherever you prefer to shop. So all the major bookstores, Amazon, Barnes & Noble has it.

Starting point is 00:27:34 If your local bookstore doesn't have it, and I'm all for supporting local bookstores, If your local bookstore doesn't have it, ask them to order it in. They can order it in. That's great. So, yeah, wherever you, you prefer to buy them. So the title of the book is Mind Training, the Science of Self-Empowerment. I love it. I'm going to make sure we have links in our show notes and descriptions.

Starting point is 00:28:02 Revinder, where can people find and follow you personally? You can visit my website. that is simply ravinda taylor.com you can also find me on social networking just search for ravinda taylor it's not that common a name you can find me on instagram and facebook i love interacting with people if you read my training i would love to hear your feedback on it if you like it if you don't like it i would like to hear you know how you benefited from it the the parts of the book that you appreciated and your own challenges in life. What is it that you're trying to overcome?

Starting point is 00:28:42 So yes, I love hearing from people. Absolutely. So I'm going to make sure I have links to your social. Everyone do me a favor. Go, number one, go get the book. And then number two, message Revinda, with your feedback and what you would rate it. And then any questions that you have, she's very active on social. She's very engaging.

Starting point is 00:29:05 She's one of my favorite follows. Revinder, I thank you so much for taking time out of your busy, busy schedule to talk to our viewers and listeners. It means the world to have you here with us today. Thank you so much, Mick. I very much enjoyed speaking with you. You are an excellent host. You have a wonderful show. Thank you for honoring me by allowing me to come on your show.

Starting point is 00:29:31 You got it. We'll have to do this again. We'll have to do this again for sure. And for all the viewers and listeners, remember your because is your superpower. Go unleash it. Thanks for tuning in to this episode of Mick Unplugged. If today hits you hard, then imagine what's next. Be sure to subscribe, rate, and share this with someone who needs it.

Starting point is 00:29:56 And most of all, make a plan and take action. Because the next level is already waiting for you. Have a question or insight to share? send us an email to hello at mickunplugged.com. Until next time, ask yourself how you can step up.

Mick Unplugged - Ravinder Taylor Reveals Simple Tools for Self-Empowerment and Mental Growth

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