It was November 2021 when I kept on joking with my loved ones about being broke for December. They thought that I had lots of money because I recently quit my job in Mc Donalds. They were right, but I didn’t have the amount of money they thought I had. I had around R8,530 that I saved up for 1 year and 3 months working in McD and had left in my trading account, in total. I planned to use the money to buy a webcam and an FTMO trading account, spend R1,000 on anything, and save the rest for emergencies.
You see I had money but had plans to invest and save it. My family, girlfriend, and friends didn't know nor understand what I was doing. What I did to cut their expectations from me was to tell and give them false reasons on why I'm broke. They didn't believe me when I told them at first, so I kept on affirming to them in different ways that made them laugh and pity. I made it a daily habit to express my false reality till it became true.
I came across many events that drained my pockets within the first 2 weeks of December. My car broke down on a highway 2 hours away from home. My bank card got hacked at an ATM when I tried withdrawing money. My FTMO trading account got terminated after I reached my drawdown limit a week after buying it. I became completely broke from the 3rd week till April 2022.
Can you imagine the state I was in?
I was at rock bottom. Nothing was working. I wasn’t making any money. I was dependent on my mother to survive. It was embarrassing. Every day I kept on asking myself: why I'm broke? why this is happening to me? what did I do wrong to deserve this? Surprisingly, two months later, I found my answer in an unexpected way. I bumped into a video on youtube that quoted a movie called The Secret; it caught my interest, I became curious, looked for the movie on Netflix, and watched it 3 times.
I’m grateful for what I did because it opened new mental pathways that raised many questions that led me to dive deeper into trying to fully understand everything about the power of our conscious and subconscious minds and the roles they play in the universe.
The **conscious mind** is your logical mind. It receives information from your five senses. It is where you think and rationalize. Logic rules the day in the conscious mind. However, the conscious mind does not control our actions. Our actions are almost exclusively controlled by the **subconscious mind**. This mind is largely ruled by emotions and instinct. Its job is to help us meet our needs and urges: reproduction, food, thirst, safety, intimacy, and many others. It is a very powerful force. It doesn’t reason or judge; it simply acts, often commanding your actions
Together, these two minds work together to determine your actions. They can bring you success or failure, happiness or anxiety, achievement or frustration. It is all in the way you use them. *You cannot outperform your image of yourself that is stored in the subconscious mind.* This is what often prevents us from succeeding. Have you ever not asked someone on a date for fear of them saying no? Or not applying for a job because you feared failure? This is the subconscious mind at work. If we do not have an image of our success in the unconscious mind, achieving consistent success is practically impossible.
How do you rewire your mind for success? The process is quite simple:
1. Decide today what you want in life.
2. Envision yourself as obtaining that goal.
3. Find techniques that work for you such as meditation and affirmations.
4. Begin moving towards your goals, celebrating your progress along the way.
5. Remember that failures are simply ways to learn, further teaching your mind to pursue success.
Once you begin training your unconscious mind to support your goals and desires, you will be on the way to success. Your brain will start building new connections that empower you to pursue your goals. Your fear and anxiety will diminish. In their place, you’ll find confidence and resolve. Remember that this must be a continuous, active process. Keep it up and you’ll reach your dreams!