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Week 2 [13.03-19.03.2017] Programming your mind for success

Programming your mind for success / Carrie Green / TEDxMancheser

Nowadays we have many various opportunities regarding our career and educational paths, therefore we set different goals in our lives, which we want to accomplish to be satisfied with who we are and as a result to develop our competences, skills and knowledge.
With all the scopes of areas which we can pick and decide to pursue, we can do nearly anything we’d like, according to our preferences and interests. Anybody can become an expert in a specific field, but it does not have to be one field at all. We do not have to limit ourselves and with all the educational programmes, courses and certificates, we can basically pick a few topics and areas which we find interesting and explore them as we wish.
On the way to achieve whatever we want and truly desire, there can appear multiple obstacles and issues which we may have to deal. This is why it is crucial for us to learn how to stay focused and motivated. While experiencing any difficulty, it is possible we will find out how strong and goal-oriented we are. We may find out that we are our biggest friend and enemy at the same time.

Do you have a clear plan for what you want to achieve and when?
What keeps you motivated and focused on your goals?
Do you experience any obstacles in the process? If so, what kind of mindset do you represent? Do you fight for you dreams or you let them go when problems appear and set new goals?
If you have any idea on how to stay motivated, focused and positive in order to achieve your goal, please share with us.

Source: Youtube
Programming your mind for success / Carrie Green / TEDxMancheser

Comments

Unknown said…
I think that I have plan but I don't know when I will do it. I think it doesn't depend only on me.
In my life every day sport gives me a lot of motivation. Before when I didn't do any sport I had more time but in fact I did less. If you want everyone can find time for some activity.
In the past I let go more but now I think I'm determined.
Everyone should check that activity gives you a lot and you are more happy. Seariously.
1. I definitely have a plan, but actual schedule is probably impossible to follow, since you don't really know how long it takes when you're just starting learning some new thing. You can be learning programming in 3 months or 10 years, and it might not be your choice after all, unless you have fixed milestones you want to achieve, but then long-term plan is probably going to shift in time anyway.

2. Achievements. Programming actually brings me a lot of fun, and creating useful projects, seeing as they work and getting feedback from happy users is an awesome feeling. With every project I feel like I'm gaining knowledge, since I can see right away that I'm capable of creating things that would seem impossible only a few months/years back.

3. It depends. Personally I'm very stubborn and determined, so unless there is a huge obstacle I'm trying to fight with it in every way I can, until I eventually succeed, but I'm also rational and if I can't see myself succeeding in a long-run, then I simply change my goal to the one that is achievable, even if it's only a bit easier than the initial one. I also very often return back to those goals and eventually clear them up later, once I gain enough knowledge to deal with them.

It's hard to say how to stay motivated, as people are different and what motivates me might discourage you and vice-versa. However I think that majority of people like to achieve some kind of achievements, so it's a good idea to set yourself milestones and slowly reach through them. It works for me very well, and like in programming - you start from a small working example, and then you're slowly putting your work on it to make it better, feature-complete.
Michał Pycek said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
Michał Pycek said…
It is very positive thing to do, to set your mind to a specific goal and also to find tools to make you stay motivated while working on your goal.
Michał Pycek said…
It is a great thing that you already have a plan, and from what I have experienced myself, it is the most important part of the process. We can never be sure how long it will take to achieve something, but it is important to enjoy the learning process and overcome obstacles.
Sylwia Pechcin said…
To be honest - I have some kind of a plan, but it not specified in any way. I mean I have no idea when it will happen and sometimes I doubt if it will happen at all.

To stay motivated I keep thinking about the time after I will finish my task and how wonderful it will be then. It pushes me to start doing what I have to do to achieve my goal.

I hate giving up so I'm always trying to complete my tasks. I set new goals only when I have achieved the previous one :)

Internet is full of motivating quotes. You have to find witch motivates you the most and keep it in mind. When you have to face with some problems - just think about your motto and don't stop on your way to success.
I have a lot of plans regarding myself. And those plans are changing lately a lot. I have lots of ideas for myself. Of course I have dreams that I am trying to make true, some of them I have already achieved, but there is more and more. :)
I agree with Jacek, when he said about the sport. Last semester I said to myself that maybe it is good idea to take a break with my everyday trainings and focus on my master thesis, just to have more time for this. But now I can see that I was doing even less than when I was everyday on my training. So it is not about loosing time for sport, if not the sport, I would loose it for something else for sure. In my opinion it is good to have some activity that keeps you busy and let you rest from anything else. Then you come back to your task and have a clear head to take care of it. It works for me at least. It is worth it to have dreams and to fight for them.
Unknown said…
Well this is one of the most interesting articles I read/watched on this class. As I start to think I do not have clear goals what I would like to do, I keep myself focused on my current tasks and problems and I am not "aware" of future. I used to have same attitude as Carrie, but somewhere in the process i lost it. I am definitely going to watch this video every day for few next weeks and try to start looking at life from sligthly different perspective.
I have a clear plan, but I try to keep it away from being too strict. I think it's crucial to do what you actually love to do. For a young people it is especially important to find a way they want to live rather than just following their initial plans blindly. As we move forward, we learn new skills, develop interest and talents, gather knowledge and gain experience in new fields. It seems to be quite normal that all aforementioned things influence our plans in some way, so in result we adjust and improve them accordingly. Of course, I'm not talking about totally changing plans because someone told us "it makes no sense", "it will not succeed" and so on, when we still truly believe in our ideas.

Long time ago, I realized that the strongest, real motivation has to come from inside of you, not from outside. Of course it is really helpful to have someone who believes in you and supports you in achieving your goals, but I believe the true power comes from your mind and it's role is just indispensable.
Unknown said…
I have some kind of a plan, but I can't say it's very clear and specified.

I'm keep aiming to achieve my goals in order to become someone well educated and simply to reach my goals.

As everyone sometimes I have to face with some problems. Then my motivation goes down. Then I have to rest some time, do some sports or go on trip, it always helps me to get my motivation back and pushes me forward to achieve my goal.

When problems appear I don't give up. I keep going to my aim.
Unknown said…
Often really capable people will have hundreds of life goals. That's admirable and really ambitious, but it can lead to spreading oneself too wide and too thin (and accomplishing none of the goals).

A better strategy is to have as few goals as possible. That might result in creating a larger, more ambitious, goal (rather than lots of micro-goals). Regardless, having fewer goals will allow you to focus much more as you will always be thinking about all of them (you'll even be dreaming about them).

"If you can't measure it, don't do it." - Ron Gibori

When you set a goal, figure out how you are going to quantify success. Is it simply completing the project? Is it raising a certain amount of money? Is it how many people see it or read it? Set a measurable goal, track it, and be honest with the result. It's the only way you'll grow.
Michał Pycek said…
It sounds promising that you visualize the result of your task and you stay motivated this way. It is important not to give up but to continue what we have started.
Michał Pycek said…
I agree with both of you since I am missing sport as well and in my opinion it definitely helps you stay focused and sharp when you get back to your projects and tasks totally filled with positive energy.
Michał Pycek said…
Thanks Paweł :-) this is definitely motivating to me regarding my preparation of the topic.
I think it is a good idea, she also made me approach things from the perspective '' I don't know how to do it.'' to '' I don't know how to do it, but I will find out''. I think her story is very motivating and inspiring, hope you can use it.
Michał Pycek said…
In my opinion both the outside world and yourselve, can motivate a person, but obviously even when your close ones believe in you but you don't - it is not likely to follow the goals and stay motivated.
Michał Pycek said…
It's great you are another person who do not give up.
Michał Pycek said…
I agree it is important for us to realize how we plan to measure and control everything on the way, so we know when we achieve it. I recommend the S.M.A.R.T. model.
Unknown said…
I have some plan for life and goals and I think until now everything is going in the right direction. I agree with Carrie Green, everything depends on our attitude. I often thought that I didn't succeed or that I was weak in something and that I was doing everything to be so. Of course It's hard think positive all the time, but when you really want something and you think about it then it starts to happen. I understand that when I was looking for a job two years ago. I applied to a company which I was not supposed to get but I wanted that very much and people with whom I had a job interview were surprised by my determination and that I really want to combine daily studies with work, so now I'm still working there :) I believe that everything starts in our head. For me it's really hard think positive and but I'm still learning it and try to do it, because It's first step to sucess, not only in the professional field but in every field of life.
Unknown said…
I know what I'd like to do in the future. That's why I have one bigger 'goal' - the most important for me. Then I set smaller goals that help me to achieve this main one. Thanks to it, I'm closer and closer and control my plan.

That's why I can agree with Damian who said a better strategy is to have as few goals as possible, but only to a point. We should consider what 'as few goals as possible' means. I have different fields, which are interesting for me and I want to develop. In each field I set some goals. Sometimes they even mesh each other. Does it mean I don't have as few goals as possible? In my opinion, according Damian's sentence it does, but I don't think my strategy is bad.
What's more, small goals can be set on a different level of abstraction and still stay small.

I've achieved a lot of goals and often I was using different ways to do it. For me, the most important, maybe even most difficult, thing is to stay focus and see the goal, which is not often so easy.
I have two, main goals in my life which I want to reach. I divided them into easier to reach, smaller goals. In my opinion, visualization is a key to achieving goals so I often visualise my goals - it keeps me motivated. I think everybody experiences any obstacles in the process and has 'bad days'. The point is to stick to your plan anyway. The visualization can be helpful if you are in doubt.
Unknown said…
I think that each of us has a plan or dream who would to be. I personally have a plan but don't always work out. In order to achieve my goal I have to first of all to learn. I am an optimist and I know it will be just as I planned :)
I have some plan for my future but I can’t really say its “clear”. I have some idea who I want to be in a future but I believe that my goals will change as I will grow older.
I try to keep myself motivated because I know that nobody will live my life and my future depends only on me, and nobody else can live my life.
If some problems appear on my way I try to fight them, if I gave up when any obstacle appeared on my way I would probably feel much worse than if I tried and didn’t succeed.
Paraphrasing polish saying “The only one who doesn’t make mistakes Is the one who doesn’t do nothing”.
Unknown said…
I don't mean to offend anyone but this TED talk has to be one of the worst TED talks I have ever watched. A personal story about a girl who succeeded, then felt bad, then went for a trip to Australia and still felt bad, finally realizing that she is the one responsible for feeling what she is feeling (bad). Now sharing this story with a point of "hey did you know that you are the one who is choosing to feel bad or be upset about anything because it all starts within your brain? I didn't!" Oh come on... Sounds like a silly-jilly goodnight story. Isn't it obvious? Being successful and feeling unsuccessful is a matter of choice, want to feel bad? Fine! Feel bad. Don't want to volunteer and experience whatever might come out of it? Fine! Stay right where you are. If I'm upset because of a rain it's not rain's fault. I am the one who may have problem with it, the rain doesn't care. I might choose to feel happy about it as well. Of course it all starts within us. What's so magical about it?

Back to the topic.
I do have a plan for what I want to achieve although it is not broken down to single, ordered, chronological, steps in a foreseeable time frame. I just know the direction. There are many obstacles on the way, there already were many of them. Overcoming those obstacles and still going on, only reassures me that this is the right path to take. Also, 'the success is built on countless failures'. Asking myself what it is that I want to do, to know, to share keeps me motivated and reminds me of 'what' and 'why'. If you have dreams, you may want to start materializing them now, because time we've got is not inifite.
Unknown said…
1. I have a clear vision of the person I want to become. I know what I want to do with my life, but I don't think I have a really good plan for this. Sometimes I catch myself thinking why am I doing certain things in my life? What is the purpose and what can I achieve by doing them? I guess, for answering those questions, I have to build really clear plan and set up my goals wisely.

2. The thing what motivates me the most is the vision of myself in the future. When I want to stop doing what I do or to give up on some projects, I start imagine myself in the situation where this project is finished. Try to feel that goal is accomplished, try to visualize my pride of myself. This trick helps me a lot in numerous situations when I wanted to give up.

3. Every person faces a lot of difficulties on it's own way. "No pain, no gain". There is no other way to achieve something big without forcing yourself though the problems and obstacles. My mindset is clear. I know what I want. I visualize my dreams and try to build a plan. I know clearly what to do to achieve some of my goals and have no idea how to achieve others. I believe that I have to work hard on goals I know how to achieve and still visualize and set my mind to find the ways to achieve my other dreams. And it will come. Solutions and opportunities always come to people who dream and work hard.

To stay on your way and stay positive to achieve the dream you have to make this dream your passion.
It's hard to tell if it is a plan because it's nowhere written and there is no certain time limit. I have my goals that I set, and I'm slowly fulfiling them. The thing that keep's me going are the goals, we can call them milestones, when I'm done with one of them I know that it is the good direction and, my "plan" is working. I think everybody experience obstacles. There is never a shortcut to achieve something big. Personally I do sports, to clear my mind and then try to solve the problem again until I overcome it. For my personal view to stay motivated is to realise your goals, the success should motivate you, also try to do sports, it helped me a lot in rough times.
Yes, I have a clear plan for want I want to achieve in my life. For some goals I know when I will be able to achieve them for some I don't. I don't need to be specially motivated, my goals are things that motivate me. Of course I have experienced many obstacles, like everyone I have ups and downs, but I have never let them demotivate me. I believe in rule what doesn't kill you makes you stronger. I think that to stay motivated you need to have a clear goals, when you are not sure what do you want you can't be motivated.
Maciej Główka said…
I have clear plan for my future. I really like programming, I would like to be a very good expert in it. I know, that to achieve this I need to read a lot of books, spend a lot of my free time on self improvement, learning new stuff etc. What keeps me motivated? First of all, I really want to be a high class professional in programming. Secondly, I think we all know how much experts in IT earn. I think that this is also really good motivation ;)
KamilG said…
Sincerely, I don't believe in these motivating lectures, meetings, movies. I think that instead of watching these things, we should take things in our hands and just do them. For example if you want to be rich, try to start own business, based on knowledge from books, knowledge of professionalists instead of dreaming about it and watching motivating movies. In my opinion people whoare lazy, just are lazy and on this way anything can help them to achieve their goals. On another hand, hard working people don't have time to waste it for watching motivational movies.
Unknown said…
I enjoyed Carrie's Green talk, I found it really worthy. She said plenty of true things about ourselves and our minds, even though her story didn't convince me so much.
Althought, there was a time I was reluctant to come out of my comfort zone and when I tried to convinced myself I don't need it, after a great time in AIESEC organisation I learnt to take a risk with a pleasure. And so I do it, thus set my goals highly. Moreover, I always try to truely believe in myself and my success(of course I have some bad days like everyone, I suppose, but that time a friend and chocolate helps ;). The only thing I'm afraid is that I will have to wait a long time before every single crazy aim which I've set will come true, because you should know that I'm quite impatient person.
In my humble opinion if you want to fulfil yourself in your life, you have to be honest with yourself, know what you want and remember to live peacefully with your mind and do not forget simply to be happy while pursue your aims - that's the key for personal success.
Unknown said…
Honestly, I wanted to turn off the 'Programming your mind for success' video somewhere halfway through. This lady was really annoying and used cheap, coaching techniques during her speech. Maybe nobody volunteered to go on the stage because they... Didn't want to? Because they paid to sit and listen to a speech and they don't like speaking themselves? Is it so hard to understand for people who like to speak publicly that some people just don't? That doesn't mean that they think 'I'm not good enough'. But whatever.

I have some goals that I want to achieve, but they're not big, long-term plans for years. I don't plan my every step and I don't think where I need to be in three or five years. But I try to be a systematic person. I don't do many things at once and don't change my hobby very often. I try not to have too many different activities at the same time. Of course often I'm sad because something went wrong or I lost my motivation but I try remain persistent in my life. I think it's easier to remain motivated when we surround ourselves with good and supportive people.
Unknown said…
I have some part of experience in few department in IT but i still have no idea what i want to do in future. I also want to create some my own application. To be honest the best way to make a decision with what you want to do in future is to decide what brand make you happy and what you want to do in your whole life. Of course money is also important thing but i think the most important thing is happy and good private life.
1) Mostly yes, but every day I am fighting through to find and add new puzzles to my life :)

2) Pursuit to achieve my goals gets me hyped. Sometimes just getting it done and get it off my bucket list works very good as a motivation.

3) Everyday. Obstacles some times makes me more productive and creative. If I am getting way too frustrated I am taking a day off and focusing on something completely different and relaxing.

4) I am always trying not to get my eyes out of the goal, even when the pressure is getting too high and despite all the critics around. I have done many things in my life despite of people who always told me not to do something or that it should not be done. To keep myself sharp I am using the same technique which I use during shooting - focus, keep calm, breathe and do what you have to and steady fire a 10.
Andrzej Gulak said…
This comment has been removed by the author.
To be honest, I don't like such videos. A person from the stage tells the well-known truths. At least, well-known for me and I would not waste my time on it, better to spend this time and money to fulfill your goals.
I have a plan for achieving my goals. But, unfortunately, it is impossible to predict what will happen next, what tomorrow will be and what awaits us ahead. Many times I had to adjust my plans because of this. Therefore, I have a common plan and deadlines for their execution.
Sometimes, of course, laziness takes up and the motivation runs low. Then I try to watch motivational films, where people achieve their goal, regardless of the problems. Or sometimes I read the biography of great people, particularly women, because I believe that in earlier time, it was easier for men to achieve their goals, but women had to apply much more effort. And of course, one of the main sources of motivation for me is visualization. When you imagine what you want in all colors, then you start moving forward, because you want to see already what you imagined as soon as possible. I believed that everything is possible in this world, but the main thing is do your best and then there will be opportunities for achieving the goal.
Bartosz Łyżwa said…
An answer for the first question is simple - yes. In my opinion many of us have a clear plan for a longer time. In my case it's programming because I really love creating new things. It's the best in programming that you can solve any problem in your own way and make something special. But how to stay motivated in our plans. I think there is no recipe that works every time - if you're interested is something then you can do that regardless of time or any other barriers.
Unknown said…
I'm this type of person who is very conscientious - with my work, school and life. If anyone will ask me a favour I'll do my best to manage. I'm trying really hard to take care of my studies and work. I've got a remorse if I won't do something, even if it wasn't just my fault, because for example there was no time to do it.
I'm fighting for my dreams and goals, I'm trying really hard. Sometimes I'm really tired, but I'm happy with myself knowing that I'm doing my best to be very best version of myself.
I don't have got precise idea to stay motivated - I think that this is personal thing. I hate the feeling that I made someone upset because of my laziness or not paying attention. I love it when I can think of what I achieved - beacuse at the very end you won't remeber effort, but what you did/got (and there is a sad part about it - sometimes trying isn't enough)

Vyvyan said…
I'm kind of well organised person but, unfortunately, sometimes is hard for me to stay motivated (great example is that I'm writing comment now, while the deadline is comming :D)
When I have something to do, I just write that things in my note. For the end of the day I'm copying that things to my google calendar which will notify me when I have something to do. Then the part of staying focused on task is comming. Usually I just close facebook, turn off my phone, I'm clearing my desk from things that will make me distracted from work.
Obstacles are normal. They are natural part of work. Usually I just create mind map of things that can be useful to resolve my problem and think about solution. Or I'm talking to myself analyzing the problem.
I was always kind of lazy person but when I decide something I will do anything to achieve the goal.
Unknown said…
To be honest, the TED presentation was about everything and nothing at the same time. Carrie started with a very interesting topic for discussion, then she told the story of her life in 10 minutes to make a motivating conclusion - you need to know what you are trying to achieve, and you must believe that you can achieve it. Well, but for this conclusion the history of her life was unnecessary. It could come to a completely different conclusion - for example, "never give up" or "start your own business" or even "read more books about motivation!", And no one will notice the dirty trick.
I think that I have quite clear goals in my life, but not plans. And this question made me think much more strongly than the TED presentation.
The best motivation for me is my previous results, if they are worth it. If not, then I just think: "How can you change the world, if you can not even finish this elementary task? Next time you must plan better your goals.".
Everyone experiences obstacles, the trick is to find the cause of the obstacle and what can you do with it :)
Yes, of course , the plan I made when I was 11 years old when it knew exactly what profession I want to master , not strange all these years he have not changed dramatically. To answer the question of when to specify an exact date I can not , I think it would be in a certain life period of time when I take stock of what I've accomplished.

I think I just like what I do , in my opinion it is the best motivator.

Yes, of course , but I think every passed obstacle gives you experience and if you are faced with a similar obstacle in the future you'll know what to do.

I think you need to be able to combine these 2 types of thinking in a certain situation , for example if you did a startup and he has not gained critical mass to be viable will be much more rational to "give up" and for example turn your idea for other needs.



Unknown said…
You have another one good trait - reasonable(maybe) self-criticism :)
Magdalena Popek said…
Every time I read something similar to "program your mind to success" I actually see "program your mind to devote yourself to work 24/7 and thinking you are maintaining some kind of work life balance". Every one has their own definition of being successful. My definition? I will definitely consider myself successful if after [several] hours of doing the job I enjoy I come back home, don't have to answer any [maybe 1 or 2, happens] business calls and have time for myself and my family. And if I want to go on holidays with them I don't have to take any loan. It's actually not much, but this is my plan. To have time and money to do all the things I love with people I love while not devoting my life to work.
Adam Paśniczek said…

I agree with your point of view. There is no need to focus on one way of our career. We should explore ourselves to find what we exactly want to do. On my example I could say that the best motivation for me is to do what I like to do. I'm imagining the future results that I could achieve and this is what makes me keep going. Another thing that is helpful to me is to split tasks into smaller ones. Then it is not so hard to get a big goal.
Ihor Ahnianikov said…
I have a plan, but I'm terrible at time management:) I believe that being successful means being inspired about the stuff you're working on, in my case it's related to IT.

I think that books about getting motivated will not help if you don't like what you're doing, if you don't want to do it - just don't. Find something you love and keep going.
Of course I have plan. I know what I want to achieve and I do whatever it takes to make it happen. I choose one field I want to be best in and I practice every day to do it. I just assumed that if you want to be good at something you just have to concentrate on this one thing and don't get distracted for other things. You have to put your whole passion into it and you will see a results. I just keep telling myself that and I see that what I'm doing is working pretty great for me. I know that I can achieve what I want just by being focused and determined to do it. And that would be my advice for everybody. Being programmer was my dream and I have a lot obstacles to defeat. But I did it. And I'm happy I'm where I'm now.
Unknown said…
Abolutely, I have a very clear plan - earn as much money as possible.
Each time when feel bored about what I'm doing I think about all material goods that I can have in future, just if I spent few more years on education, it keeps me motivated.
I know money isn't everything but to live as I want to live, I need a lot of money, that's why it's my priority.
I will never let my dreams go away, maybe I will have to change the way to achieve my goals but I won't give up.

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