Stretch Past Ability Myths

"…I opened the page and scrolled all the way down to the bottom of the page, expecting to see ourselves in the last 10 positions for the Best Coaching Blogs 2009," Frederique Murphy relates…

"As you know this is not where we had been ranked at, but that is where I first looked. That means that for a quick second or two, my little voice (yes, you know that one…!) had decided that there was no way I could be anywhere else other than the bottom of that list."

If you entered a contest and received results in an email, would you first look at the top or bottom to see where you ranked? Please take a minute to complete the poll you see just to the right of this blog.

Frederique says she quickly interrupted the pattern -- of seeing herself as lesser than and began to look at the top in the belief that she truly could rank at the top.

Evidently over time, Frederique had wired into her brain she was not in the top ten for accomplishing a big goal, such as writing one of the 10 Best Coaching Blogs 2009. No doubt the mindset that she might not be right at the top began in childhood. She's not alone according to research.

I can relate to this because I developed a similar mindset through varied experiences K-12. For instance, I was one of the last players chosen for any of the kickball teams all through elementary school. So I began to think of myself as not good in sports. Do you relate to this as well? Though, a late bloomer, I took up golf and have played tournaments and won... in my 60's!

Thinking of ourselves as "lesser than," when it comes to performance, is but one of the many myths we create in our brain about our capabilities. Myths such as this one are wired into our brain's basal ganglia, the storehouse of patterns and routines we experience daily over time. The number of times we wire these into our brain, the more deeply entrenched the belief. Dr. Ellen Weber explains this myth in relation to beliefs about learning and performance...

MYTH: Some things are impossible for some people to learn or perform well, in reasonable time limits.
Reality: Hook even difficult facts onto one thing you know already and learning or doing new skills increases in less time.

Frederique said she listened to the little voice for one or two seconds... the voice that told her to look at the bottom.

All of us face situations when we revert back to patterns and routines stored in our brain's basal ganglia. Frederique points out that she stopped her glance quickly, to glance at the top of the list. As a coach, she was very mindful about what was happening. So she immediately changed her unthinking first move to look for her name at the top of the winners list, fully showing her confidence.

Rather than allowing our minds go into autopilot when doing something, we can instead take thoughtful actions... that transform.

Good news is that the human brain has great plasticity so that enables us to change habits or beliefs about ourselves that we formed long ago. The more you do something in the opposite direction, the more you rewire your brain for the new. Stretch and go for it!

If you have a story to add or comments, please do comment. I'd welcome your thoughts.