| I was recently coaching a person who told me that | | | | first man to run the mile in less than 4 minutes, a |
| he would "try" to improve his relationship with a | | | | barrier many experts had long considered |
| coworker but that it would be "very difficult" and | | | | unbreakable. What is remarkable is that Australia's |
| that it would "take a lot of time to trust him." | | | | John Landy and New Zealand's Peter Snell bettered |
| Consider the words that are in bold above. Could it | | | | his record that same year. Roger's feat changed the |
| be that while this person thinks he's merely describing | | | | thinking of people in countries all over the world." |
| the future, he's actually creating it? Could it be that | | | | (I've bolded those words for emphasis). |
| our words actually produce results in the real world? | | | | What do these examples have in common? They all |
| Consider these examples: | | | | suggest that the key to unlocking our chains lies in |
| I was recently reading about Lanny Bassham, a | | | | the words we use to describe our world. |
| former Olympic rifle shooter and "mental coach" | | | | Consider the possibility that if you want to know |
| whose clients include U.S. Olympic archers. Bassham | | | | what stops someone from achieving a goal, listen to |
| notes that the archery community has a peculiar | | | | how the goal is described. Could it be that describing |
| obsession with "target panic," which refers to a | | | | a goal as "difficult," "strenuous," or "tough" creates |
| malady sometimes suffered by champion archers | | | | those outcomes and that talking about a goal as |
| who become so worried about hitting the target that | | | | "achievable," "exciting," or "inspiring" creates |
| they stop themselves from even attempting a shot. | | | | outcomes that conform to those descriptions? |
| Bassham says that, "the words 'target panic' have | | | | Isn't it amazing how we can predict the future? Or, |
| induced an unnecessary amount of severity and | | | | perhaps, not so amazing. Perhaps the process is quite |
| concern about this condition among archers." He | | | | straight forward: We predict how the future will |
| concludes by noting that, "I think if they had a better | | | | occur when we describe that future and then, |
| word for it, they'd have a lot less problem trying to | | | | naturally, live out that prediction. |
| cure it." (I've bolded those words for emphasis). | | | | Or, as ancient wisdom has noted, "Be careful what |
| In his book, The Perfect Mile, Neal Bascomb writes | | | | you wish for. You may get it. |
| that, "On May 6, 1954, Roger Bannister became the | | | | |