Five Things to Help You Think Bigger

I wrote an earlier post about my realization that I needed to think bigger about my vision and my current perspective of the world around me. Here is a list of five practical things you can do to help you think bigger to achieve your own dreams and goals. These are things that I have implemented in my own life at one time or another.

1. Get close to something big.

"A change of place plus a change of pace equals change of perspective." -Mark Batterson

I got this idea again from Today is the Day by Bil Cornelius. If you want to achieve a big dream, you have to get used to thinking bigger than you already do. Surround yourself with things that are much bigger than you, but appreciate what it takes to be that big. It may be to get into a high rise building and appreciate the planning that goes into the city streets, utilities, and flow of people. Maybe it is sitting in a stadium like Minute Maid Park, or Candlestick, and appreciating what it took to build it out of materials that came out of the ground, the systems that were required to bring those materials together and the people to construct it, then the systems and people needed to bring a football or baseball game to the masses. Maybe it is looking into the sky and seeing how many stars exist, and realizing there is so much abundance around us that is untapped and undiscovered.

U.S.S. Lexington - Rather than admiring the technology, I like to think about the systems required to recruit, feed, train, and utilize a crew of thousands. Image courtesy of ©Travis Witt

2. What would your dream look like if you added a zero to everything you saw and do?

Lunch with my friend was a great reminder to do this. One of my early goals this year was to write an eBook and sell about 500 copies of it. What's to stop me from writing multiple books on multiple platforms, and selling 50,000 or even 500,000 copies of them all?

This means we should at least write out our vision for our lives. Whether it is written as goals, or something a little more morbid like the epitaph you'd like on your grave marker or your own obituary, write it down. After you write it down, add some zeroes to it.

3. Become a "gimper" for your dream.

I always thought of the word gimp as a bad thing, but after re-reading The Prayer of Jabez by Bruce Wilkinson I realize that I need to be willing to be a gimper for my dream. A gimper is someone who does that one extra thing, a little more than what was required. We often see this in the form of Disney Magic moments, excellent customer service, or that person who goes the extra mile when helping someone in need. Are you giving your bare minimum for your dream, or are you doing a little more than what is required?

"Nordies" are known for going the extra mile for their customers.
http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nordstrom.jpg

4. Read books and listen to podcasts/recordings from people who have gone before you.

Some books that have truly inspired me over the years include success stories of people like Pat Flynn (Let Go), Robert Kiyosaki (Rich Dad Poor Dad), and Tim Ferriss (The 4-Hour Workweek). I recommend you get yourself copies of these if you don't have them already. Find stories of people who inspire you. I often find the back-stories of these people to be much more useful than their branded personalities.

5. Remind yourself daily of your larger perspective

Repetition is important to move information from short-term memory into long-term memory. I started carrying a 3x5 index card in my wallet with a goal I will read over and over for the next 30 days.

I read this card every morning when I wake up, and again before I go to sleep. I also read this every time I catch myself thinking negatively about my situation or my goals. The moment any self-doubt creeps in, I pull this card out of my pocket and I read it to myself. The back side of the card has this verse written on the back...

"Ask and you shall receive.

Seek and you shall find.

Knock and it will be opened to you."

You can learn more about this process by listening to Earl Nightingale's recordings from here, www.downloadEarl.com.

Comment below. How do you help yourself see a bigger vision for your life?