Do you hold self-limiting beliefs that are preventing you from reaching your goals? If you won’t or can’t let go of these beliefs, you’ll likely find yourself doing the same old thing for years, thinking that nothing will ever change for you. Sadly, nothing ever will, unless you can shake those self-imposed limitations.

Interestingly, even though there are millions of different people with millions of different personalities, many share the same negative beliefs. Do these sound familiar to you?

I Don’t Deserve It

Do you think that success and wealth are things other people deserve, but not you? Do you really think that you were created in some inferior manner compared to everyone else? That is not true. You were created just like everyone else and have the same right and the same potential as everyone else to achieve your goals.

It’s Not Possible

Do you feel that your goals are impossible to reach? Sailing around the world, breaking the 4 minute mile, and breaking the sound barrier were all said to be impossible. These were limiting beliefs which were eventually changed.

It’s Too Hard/Too Much Work

Too many people today are looking to make a quick buck by doing nothing. They’ve been led to believe that they will simply fall into a gold mine and achieve wealth with little or no effort. Hey, even the people who did fall into gold mines during the gold rush had to do a little digging! However, it doesn’t have to be hard and it can actually be FUN to make some changes in your life.

I’m Too Stupid

This is a common one. Everyone possesses a lack of confidence in certain areas or feels limited in their knowledge. This is natural, and there are very few people who really do know everything (you must know a few who THINK they fall into that category.) All of us, however, have an area of expertise, whether we realize it or not. In addition, we are all capable of LEARNING. Did you know that you can become an expert in anything if you study it for 5 years? Yes, YOU! An EXPERT!

I Don’t Have Time

“Five years! I don’t have that kind of time!” you say. So who says you have to become an EXPERT? Think about how much you can learn in two years or one year or even six months. The point is that you have the ability to learn. You simply have to decide on the subject and how much time you want to devote. Then, take Action.

I’ve Always Had Bad Luck/Nothing Comes Easy to Me

How many times have you used this one? It’s easy to blame your lack of success on bad luck or bad timing or bad friends or the bad economy, etc. There will always be things that happen that are beyond your control, but if you persist in your efforts, you can overcome anything. Perseverance is the key.

Are you holding on to any of these self-limiting beliefs? If so, are they a result of past programming? If so, get RID of the negative programming and eliminate those self-limiting beliefs. They are guiding your actions and creating your reality! Believe that you can do anything and have anything you want, and you will!

Once you break through a self-imposed barrier, you can sail like Columbus, you can fly like Yeager, or you can run like Bannister in the direction of your dreams!

The other night I awoke after falling asleep with the television on. As usual, there was an infomercial on and I really did not pay that much attention to it. I just found the remote to turn the tv off. As I was in the process of finding the remote and hitting the off button, I heard the host say, “With this offer, you can’t lose.” As for this specific offer, it may be true but many life lessons have taught me that is usually not the case. However, it was at this moment that my subconscious mind took over as I fell back asleep in a matter of seconds.

Throughout the rest of the night it seemed like my mind kept repeating, “If you can’t lose, you can’t win.” Over and over.

It may have been an advertising slogan or just a t-shirt slogan from a few years back, but a popular phrase was, “You can’t win if you don’t play.” The continuation of that truism is that if you play, there is a chance you are going to lose. Probably the most basic examples of this comes from the sport of baseball. On any given play, either the pitcher is going to lose or the batter is going to lose. The batter steps up to the plate and he is either going to find a way to get on base or he is going to make an out. The pitcher toes the rubber and pitches to the batter, knowing he is either going to get the batter out or the batter will get on base. Every single at bat results in one of the two players losing to the other.

But if a pitcher never takes the mound, he can never strike anyone out. If a batter never goes to bat, he will never get a hit. If a baserunner never takes a chance of getting thrown out, he will never steal a base.

It is the same thing in life. If you have ever dreamed of opening your own business, but have never done anything toward this goal, you will never know if you could have become a successful entreprenuer. If you have ever dreamed of writing the great American novel, but never put a pen to paper or tapped out a thought on the computer, you will never know if you could have been a successful writer. There are so many things that can be looked at here but I think you can understand the point I am trying to make.

Yes, there is a chance that if you try to open a business it will not succeed, but if you never tried, how will you ever know. Sure if you write a book, publishers might reject it and no one will ever read it, but again, how will you ever know? Of course, if you don’t try, you never have to worry about fear or rejection. If you can’t lose, you can’t win.

The above passage was originally written by Marianne Williamson who is the author of “A Return to Love”

Pictures from Las Vegas 2008

Understand What’s Important to You

Each personality type has a different idea of what it means to be successful. Self-knowledge is one common goal that will help everyone achieve personal success. So many people are hung up on somebody else’s idea of what it means to be successful, and they are unaware of what is truly important to them. This is completely normal. We all have important role-models and influencers in our lives who may have basic values that are quite different from our own. If this is the case, it’s important to recognize that the discrepancy between what we have been taught is truly important and what we personally believe to be truly important is due to a difference in perspective. If we spend our time and effort trying to meet somebody else’s idea of success, and ignore or belittle any conflicting messages from our own psyche, then we will find ourselves exhausted and unhappy. Realizing what is truly important to us is a major step towards achieving personal success.

Recognize Your Weaknesses Without Hiding Behind Them

While improving our self-knowledge and realizing our true goals can be very liberating, we should not discard the rules of the society in which we live. We must recognize that other people’s value systems are no less important than our own. And we must recognize and accept that we live in a society in which certain personality types and behaviors are more suited towards particular tasks. This is the second key that will open the door towards personal growth.

For example, there are situations in which it is more appropriate and effective to show compassion and caring, rather than impersonal logic. Likewise, there are situations that call for using impersonal logic to make a decision, in which the more subjective viewpoint of the Feeling function is inappropriate and ineffective. Persons with a preference for Feeling will have a natural advantage over Thinkers in situations that require compassion and awareness of other’s emotions. Conversely, persons with a preference for Thinking will have a natural advantage over Feelers in situations that require the ability to make a decision based on impersonal data.

As we learn about our personality type and the types of others, we are empowered with an understanding of why people react differently in different situations. When put into the context of Psychological Type, we can better accept and understand people’s behaviors that are different from ours. These insights are extremely useful and powerful to us as individuals. However, if we are concerned with growing as individuals, we must take care not to use personality type as an excuse for our inappropriate behavior. While it’s powerful and useful to notice that another person’s inappropriate behavior may be due to their personality type, we cannot use the same reasoning on ourselves. We should recognize that our personality type has weaknesses, but we must use that knowledge to conquer those weaknesses rather than to excuse poor behavior. We cannot be responsible for other people’s behavior, but we can control our own.

Accordingly, if we notice that someone seems to be unable to make an impersonal decision that is isolated from human perspective, we should say to ourselves, “Ah ha, here is a Feeler. This person does not use Thinking well, and that is why they’re behaving this way.” Yet when we as Feelers are presented with a situation that requires an impersonal approach, we should NOT say to ourselves “I am a Feeler, and can’t be expected to make decisions based purely on impersonal facts and logic.” This kind of rationalization for behavior is certainly an easy way out of a situation, but it enforces the weakness, making it weaker and weaker still.

Strive for Balance

Most of the weaknesses associated with any given personality type are a result of that type’s dominant function overtaking the personality to the extent that the other functions become slaves to the dominant function. Although it is natural for every personality to be ruled by its dominant function, it becomes a problem when the supporting functions are not allowed to develop fully on their own because they are too busy “serving the master”. In such cases, a personality can become quite imbalanced.

A situation in which the dominant function of a personality completely overshadows the other personality functions is analogous to a kingdom that is ruled by an overbearing king who requires absolute servitude. Imagine such a king sitting down to dinner in his castle. He keeps all of his servants running about to bring him dinner, and requires that they serve him fully (disregarding their own needs) until he is completed sated. His Foreign Minister, who is expected at an important affair at a neighboring kingdom, finds himself pouring ale. His Minister of Domestic Affairs, rather than addressing the issue of a failing economy, slices roast turkey. His staff grabs food for themselves here and there, but never get what they really need or want, and are consequently unsatisfied, malnourished, and underdeveloped. The issues that the staff should be taking care of are left undone, because they never finish their primary task of serving the king. The king’s immediate needs are being met, and so he is tolerably happy, but he is an ineffective king. As far as he knows, everything and everybody exists simply to serve him. He has no concept of Success beyond his daily needs. Since he cannot see beyond his own needs, the entire kingdom suffers.

Likewise, a personality that has developed with a goal of serving the dominant function above all other considerations often results in a person who is imbalanced. In severe cases, the weaknesses associated with the given type are often quite apparent to others, and overshadow the individual’s natural strengths. Such a drastic imbalance is not common, and may be the result of continuous and extreme stress. Most people will experience times in their lives during which they are stressed to the point of serious imbalance. People who experience this constantly have issues that need to be dealt with, and should seek help.

Much more commonly, we see individuals who exhibit both the strengths and weaknesses of their type. It is natural and healthy that each personality type is ruled by a dominant function, and that the other functions support the ruling function. We don’t seek to change anyone’s natural self, or to achieve a perfect balance amongst a personality’s functions. By definition, a kingdom needs a king in order to exist, and a personality needs a dominant function. However, a kingdom with a well-developed and effective king (the dominant function), who has well-trained and educated advisors (the supporting functions), will thrive more than the kingdom ruled by a neglectful king who is supported by inexperienced advisors.

As we can see, Balance and Success are relative terms. They have different meaning for each of the sixteen personality types. One statement using these terms is true for all types: Balance is the key to Success.

Opening the Door

So how do we go about realizing what’s truly important to us? How do we recognize our weaknesses, and learn not to hide behind them? How do we become balanced? How do we open that magical door that will show us the way to personal growth and success?

There is no quickie scheme that will make you a successful person. Psychological Type is a powerful aid in our quest for excellence, but it is not the actual solution. It is a model that will help you to expand your understanding of human nature. An improved understanding of yourself and others will help you to find, follow or expand your path. An awareness and acceptance of the fact that one personality function may be more effective than another function in a given situation will help you to understand the relevance of personal growth to your life.

Carl Jung identified a process of personal growth that he called individuation, which is essentially the conscious realization of your true self, beyond the Ego that is presented by your conscious self. Our efforts to help people develop themselves is essentially the effort to help them to realize that their personal perspectives and conscious ideas are only a small part of who they are, and that the more they try to develop and defend this superficial “self”, the further they get away from their true Self. This realization helps a psyche in many concrete ways, and is also a positive step towards promoting a psyche that is open to the process of individuation. For the purposes of making this realization accessible to the general public, our writings are mostly void of complex theoretical discussion.

Happy Holidays!!!

New Article: Christmas is the Time for Giving Thanks
Giving thanks brings about a transformation in attitude and circumstances. When you decided to give thanks regardless of your circumstances, it expresses trust in God. When life is dark and your dreams are shatter like broken glass, give thanks.

Photo Albums and Recent Pictures Archive
An image collection of people, places, events, and activities from the past year.  This section is constantly being updated.

I’m updating my address book!
As always I’m updating my address book. If your information has changed recently, please take a moment to update your contact information. Your information is stored in my personal address book and will not be shared with anyone else….Thanks again!

Sincerely,
—
Brock Brown M.S.

“Be strong and very courageous, that you may observe to do according to
all the law which Moses My servant commanded you; do not turn from it to
the right hand or to the left, that you may prosper wherever you go.”

There is another class of people you should watch out for: the people who
will try to talk you out of your blessing. They will actually try to
shrink your faith in the name of religion or “common sense.”
Small-minded people have a particularly bad habit of looking at you like
you are crazy because they did not hear that particular thing from God.
(I suppose they think God would never do something without clearing it
through them!)

Very often, blessing-stealers are Christians with a very small vision of
God. They are doing all they can to believe God just to pay their rent.
Go higher. Associate with people who are believing God to help them buy a
house, debt free! You serve a God who is bigger than a rent-paying God.
Get to know Him as the all-powerful Jehovah-Jireh. He declares, “I will
pay it off, and not simply in your children’s lifetime, but right now. I
am God your Provider.”

People who struggle to believe God just for rent will rarely be able to
believe what God is saying to you. Family members also have a unique
ability to steal a blessing by persuading you that you did not hear God.
They find it hard to believe that God could use you—after all, they
remember you in diapers. Even Jesus had to deal with this problem.

Be prepared when people try to talk you out of your mission and promise.
If they cannot persuade you, they may begin to criticize and ostracize
you. Do not turn aside; be bold and courageous. Look neither to the right
nor to the left, and be sure to do all that the Lord placed in your
heart!

Jesus often spoke about the role of prayer in the Christian’s life and the church. He guaranteed His presence when two or more gather in unity to pray. He also promised to act whenever believers speak to God in the authority of Christ’s name. Jesus taught that God is to be the focus of our petitions, and He showed by example that the basis for ministry is communion with the Father.

If we want God to release His power into a situation, it’s important to do two things:

First, depend solely on Jesus’ merits and mediation. Our new life as children of God began when we acknowledged our helplessness and accepted Christ’s substitutionary death on our behalf (Romans 5:6). He acted as our mediator and reconciled us to the Father (1Timothy 2:5). If we want God to do mighty works in and through us, we must continue in the same spirit of dependence on Christ (Galatians 2:20).

Second, separate from all known sin. At the cross, when the Savior paid our penalty for transgression, sin’s controlling power over us was broken. However, its presence remains in this world and also lingers in us. Gossip, laziness, gluttony, and selfishness are everyday occurrences. The remedy for every sin is to confess it to God, turn away from that attitude or behavior, and receive God’s forgiveness and cleansing (1 John 1:9). He will use only cleansed vessels.

If we are going to make big requests of God, we must come to Him with clean hearts and hands—that is, solely on the merits of His Son Jesus.

Even though the nature of their lectures served different purposes there was one underlying tone that was presented at both events. Farrakhan and the Dalai Lama spoke of strengthening our sense of world community. Both presented the message that human kindness, religious tolerance, equality among people, compassion, and warmheartedness brings a sense of community, a sense of responsibility, and a sense of concern for others which are all key elements to building a stronger world community.

Hearing these two speak was a very educational and helpful experience. Both are very charismatic, intelligent, and spellbinding speakers. Not having an opportunity to hear them would have denied others and myself a good opportunity to visit the issues that affect our communities today.

Wikipedia Entry for World Community
Wikipedia Entry for Louis Farrakhan
Wikipedia Entry for the Dalai Lama

If you’re serious about scoring as many interviews as you can and for the jobs you really want, then learning how to market yourself with a resume that grabs attention should be one of your top priorities. This is the only way you’ll stand out from the crowd.

Know the Market

Advertising companies do market research before they put together an ad campaign. Why? Because they need to know who they’re selling to and what those people want. The same strategy should apply to your job search. You have to know what jobs are available to know how to market yourself to them. Scour the job boards and classifieds to see what’s out there, and know what kind of job for which you’re looking. Finding a job can be pretty tough if you have no goals or ideas about what you want to do.

Target Your Resume

Determine which jobs you’re interested in and target your resume to each one. Don’t submit the same version of it for every job you apply for, change words and move things around so your resume uses some of the same lingo as the job descriptions. Use keywords to highlight your experience and accomplishments that best match those sought for each job. Your goal should be to match the content of your resume as much as possible to the qualifications and duties described in each job notice.

Make It Stand Out

A visually appealing and easy-to-read resume gets attention. Skip the fancy fonts, long paragraphs, and flowered stationary. Use as few words as possible and make creative use of white space, bold letters, sectioning, and bullets. A potential employer should be able to scan over your resume quickly to determine if it deserves a longer look. You want them to notice what’s great about your resume, not the color of the paper.

Highlight What’s Important

Yes, you are multi-talented and of course, your resume needs to sum up your skills and abilities. However, you don’t need to list everything. You just need to let them know what skills you have that are assets for the job.

Perfecting your resume can be tough, but it really does help to think of it as a marketing tool. Know your audience and tailor your resume to them each time. If you don’t, you may not appeal to the people who are reading it. With a little time and patience and perhaps a little extra advice, you can put together a resume that’s sure to get you in the door for an interview. The rest is up to you!

Brock Brown’s Resume in PDF Format