A Winner’s Mindset

About a thousand years ago, a Japanese General led his Samurai army into a battle with a sworn enemy. The enemy’s army was more potent and better equipped. The situation seemed impossible, and there was an air of inevitability about the result.

On the way to the battleground, the General decided to stop at a religious shrine to offer his prayers. After offering his prayers with the rest of the troops, the General said, “God has spoken. I will now toss a coin. If it lands on Heads, we will win the battle, and if the coin lands on tails, we will lose. Our destiny and the will of God will now reveal itself.”

So saying, the General took out a coin from his pocket and flipped it in the air. All the troops watched the coin with bated breath as it landed.

It was Heads !!

The Samurai were all ecstatic. Destiny had revealed itself, and they were going to win the battle. The troops rushed into the battlefield, feeling invincible. Despite being outnumbered, thanks to the unshakeable belief that destiny was on their side, the Samurai fought valiantly and vanquished the enemy.

After the victory, a lieutenant turned to the General and said, ” It was meant to be. No one can change destiny.”

“You are right !!” the General said as he showed the Lieutenant the coin with Heads on both sides.

This story is an excellent illustration of the power of belief. No amount of skills and competencies will be of value if the belief to succeed is not there.

Winner’s Mindset

When you approach any task or challenge believing that success is inevitable and is your destiny, your entire approach changes. Your unshakeable belief in your abilities and your future becomes the foundation for a winner’s mindset.

But, how do we build our self-belief in the face of significant odds and challenges when the goals are big and improbable.?

I have this mental model that describes the relationship between our beliefs and the results we experience in life.

A weak belief system leads to weak actions leading to mediocre results that undermine an already weak belief system. In contrast, a positive belief system will power you to commit to action with high energy and enthusiasm, leading to great outcomes. A low belief system will disempower you, and it will reflect in the quality of actions that you take and make you feel powerless and vulnerable.

The story tells all of us a powerful lesson. Fix your belief system. There is nothing more to it than just a mental shift. Given a specific situation in your life, recognize that you have a better chance to succeed with a positive mindset instead of a negative one..