{"id":26076,"date":"2017-02-01T15:09:15","date_gmt":"2017-02-01T19:09:15","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/?p=26076"},"modified":"2017-02-01T15:09:15","modified_gmt":"2017-02-01T19:09:15","slug":"how-to-ride-the-entrepreneurial-rollercoaster-and-keep-it-together","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.andysowards.com\/blog\/2017\/how-to-ride-the-entrepreneurial-rollercoaster-and-keep-it-together\/","title":{"rendered":"Here\u2019s How to Ride The Entrepreneurial Rollercoaster and Keep It Together"},"content":{"rendered":"

Starting a business is possibly one of the most challenging things a person could do. Putting yourself out there, feeling vulnerable before masses of strangers, that sting of rejection or being drowned by paperwork \u2026 the least we can expect is a rollercoaster ride of highs and lows on the path toward building a legitimate company and eventually writing your own pay checks.<\/p>\n

Whatever the challenges of our sector or the individual barriers to success, all too often the biggest thing holding us back is \u2013 you guessed it \u2013 ourselves. Worry, negative thinking and self-doubt can literally cripple us, wiping out the confidence required to embrace opportunities and be the best we can be. But how can you alter this destructive way of thinking? What can you do to literally change your mind? Neuro-linguistic programming, or NLP, could have the answers.<\/p>\n

What is NLP?<\/h3>\n

\"NLP<\/a>
\nWhat Is NLP?<\/em><\/p>\n

NLP is a unique approach to personal development that was developed in the United States in the 1970s by Dr Richard Bandler<\/a> and John Grinder. Unlike other \u2018talking therapies\u2019, NLP is not concerned with why<\/em> you are thinking a certain way, or even what<\/em> it is you are thinking about, but rather how<\/em> you are thinking and how you can change this.<\/p>\n

How can NLP help?<\/h3>\n

\"NLP<\/a>
\n8 Destructive Thinking Patterns and How to Change Them<\/em><\/p>\n

NLP is a go-to of personal development practitioners<\/a> and business coaches globally to help people overcome negative patterns of thinking. It really pinpoints those spirals that have become so habitual you don\u2019t realize they\u2019re happening until it\u2019s too late \u2013 and it stops them in their tracks.<\/p>\n

NLP then proposes simple, intuitive strategies to start interrupting negative thoughts and as well as learn to anticipate when negativity might crop up \u2013 and then block its passage. You\u2019ll find that the first few attempts will work well \u2013 but what counts is your ability to remain alert to your thought cycles in the long term and consistently alter them so the changes are lasting. Think of it as a game, as if you were a beginner being asked to learn to play poker<\/a> or any other strategy game – grasping the basics is relatively easy, but to really attain some level of success, you have to slowly and patiently master your craft.<\/p>\n

Let It Go<\/h3>\n

\"NLP<\/p>\n

Worrying is like wishing for what you don\u2019t want. Worrying about things that you have done and can\u2019t change, or things that might happen but aren\u2019t certain, are a waste of energy.<\/p>\n

There is a famous scene in Bridge of Spies, where captured spy, Mark Rylance, is asked why he isn\u2019t worrying about being executed. Rylance calmly replies: \u201cwould it help to worry?\u201d That is NLP in action; worrying doesn\u2019t help, so why not try and resist doing it?<\/p>\n

Of course, it\u2019s good to learn from past mistakes and prepare for possible futures, but you shouldn\u2019t let either of these drown out what is happening here and now. If you catch yourself fretting over things you have no control over, take a leaf out of Rylance\u2019s book and ask yourself \u201cdoes this really help me?\u201d<\/p>\n

Change what you think people think<\/h3>\n

\"NLP<\/a>
\n10 Clear Reasons Why You Shouldn\u2019t Care What Others Think<\/em><\/p>\n

One of the biggest things we worry about is what people are going to think or say about us. This anticipated criticism could often cajole us into constantly \u201cplaying safe\u201d and missing out on a ton of opportunities.<\/p>\n

The thing is you don\u2019t know what people think of you \u2013 If indeed they are thinking anything at all. As Eleanor Roosevelt once said: \u201c<\/em>You<\/em> wouldn’t worry<\/em> so much about what others think of you,<\/em> if you<\/em> realized how seldom they do.\u201d<\/em><\/p>\n

Once you understand that a lot of the time you are embellishing if not creating troubling thoughts, you can decide to make up something better. Why not assume that everyone loves you and thinks your ideas are great, and see how much confidence and command that gives you? Before you know it, they really will think and react to you as if that was the case.<\/p>\n

Silence your internal voice<\/h3>\n