Every day you allow your subconscious mind to take over every action and decision that you make. This impacts on the steps you take to move forward in your life, the dreams and goals you set for yourself, and the overall wellbeing of your present state.

By listening to the little saboteur – whose job, incidentally, is to stop you from moving forward – or listening to ingrained messages that are either negative or do not stimulate you to look for answers and solutions, you have allowed yourself to remain in a comfort zone… that muscle in your brain is getting no exercise.

Which is a real shame, as you CAN go farther than you’ve ever imagined. Because you DO have all the answers within you, you DO have all the solutions, and you CAN step out confidently with passion and purpose to gain anything you desire in life. Provided you give yourself permission to do so first, have belief that you can attain your goals, and train your mind to seek out the answers you need.

You are more intelligent than you give yourself credit for. Your mind loves to come up with solutions to your problems or needs, if you give it the permission to do so. By changing your thought patterns and the questions you ask of yourself, you give your mind an opportunity to play a game, to challenge itself, to kick into gear and provide you with insights and inspiration that can take you to the next level.

Here are 3 power questions to some common challenges or obstacles that will help you move forward in life:

1) “How Can I Afford It?” replaces “I can’t afford it”. By saying “I can’t afford it” you are insulting your own intelligence and training your mind to shut off any possibilities. “I can’t afford it” is a closed statement and you are, in effect, telling your brain to be quiet and shut up.

– Statement of Proof: Try this exercise. Hold in your mind a powerful image of something you would love to own or do that involves spending a lot of money you don’t currently have. Perhaps you would like to take an exotic holiday, drive a Porsche, start a business, buy a house. Whatever it is that is close to your heart, close your eyes and then see it in your mind. Whilst looking at that picture in your mind, say to yourself out loud “I can’t afford it”.  What happens? How did you feel? Take note of your feelings and how your brain actually felt. Close your eyes and again see the image clearly in your mind. Say out loud “How can I afford it?”. What happens this time? How did you feel? What happened to your mind? Did you feel it jump up and down with excitement that it was allowed to race into gear to find out how you COULD afford it?

2) “If I could do it over again, what would I do differently?” replaces the statement: “I’m always doing things the wrong way”. I challenge you to remove the words “always” and “never” when talking about yourself – in particular, when you’re beating yourself up! Do you really believe that you never learn anything? Of course not! So how can you always be doing things the wrong way? Next time you hear yourself saying something like “I’m always doing things the wrong way” or “I never do anything right” or similar, stop and ask yourself “If I could do it over again, what would I do differently?” Let your mind objectively look at what you did and come up with solutions that will better equip you for next time.

3) “What’s the worst that could happen?” replaces “I’m frightened / scared I won’t be able to do it”. Sometimes our little saboteur likes to chime in and stop you from moving forward.

– Statement of Proof: Try this exercise. Hold in your mind a big dream or goal you have always wanted to accomplish but have been too scared to start. It may be a new job, trying something new in your business, commencing study, or relocating to the other side of the country. Whatever it is that you would love to do but have always held back, close your eyes and see that dream or goal in your mind. Let’s face it, if you haven’t taken steps toward that dream or goal, your little saboteur has been saying something like “I’m frightened I can’t do it” or “I’m not good enough to do that” or “I will fail”. Say out loud “I’m frightened I can’t do it” or something similar that has meaning to  you. What happens? How did you feel? It’s not a nice feeling is it. Close your eyes and again see the dream or goal clearly in your mind. Say out loud “What’s the worst that could happen?”. What happens this time? How did you feel? Did your mind exult at being let out to play? Did you imagine a few scenarios? Were those scenarios small, big or huge issues? Are they really as big or huge as you think they are? If so, what steps can you take to make them smaller?

Can you start to see the shift when you ask your mind some powerful questions? Observe your speech and thoughts over the next few days and start replacing demotivating words and statements with power questions.

If you catch yourself saying the same or similar things, write down a power question and stick it in a prominent place where you can see it everyday as a reminder – this could be on your bathroom mirror, your fridge, or in your wallet. When you hear yourself saying something negative, read the power question and see how it unlocks your mind for real, tangible transformation.

“First comes thought; then organization of that thought, into ideas and plans; then transformation of those plans into reality. The beginning, as you will observe, is in your imagination.” ~ Napoleon Hill

What power questions do you like to use? What kicks your brain into gear? Please share in the comment box below as YOUR power question may help someone else 🙂.