It’s all in the state of mind

Have you ever seen someone in a similar situation as yours at any point of life?

I am sure you must have.

Did you notice the way they handled the same situation? Did you feel they handled it more aptly than you did? Or did you feel they messed up and complicated a fairly simple issue at hand?

All the people in this world react to the same situation in a different manner. Even the same person is likely to react to the same situation differently at different points of time.

Ever wondered why?

This is because every person perceives the problem in a different manner. Our reaction to a problem or situation depends upon:

• Our understanding of the problem/situation;
• Our capability of finding the solution and
• Our state of mind

There could be a number of other factors too but I wish to focus on the “state of mind” today.

Human mind is capable of doing incredible things. Whether it is intelligence or creativity, human mind knows no boundaries. It is this mind only, when put to work without any constraints or caveat, leads us to great inventions and discoveries in all the spheres of life.

Then what is meant by our “state” of mind?

We often use words like relaxed, at peace, weary, exhausted, disarrayed etc to describe our state of mind. But is that truly our state of mind?

I call these the “physical state of mind”, in the same way as we define the physical state of other parts of our body.
What about the “mental state of mind”?

Our zeal, optimism, confidence, will power, sanguinity and fortitude are what constitute our mental state of mind. Let’s call it the Positivity Index (PIx).

It is this Positivity Index (PIx) that determines our reaction to every problem/situation that life puts us through. One might be very intelligent but if he has a low Positivity Index (PIx), he is quite unlikely to perform to the best of his abilities. In other words, low PIx can overpower a high IQ. On the contrary, a person with a high Positivity Index is likely to outshine even the best of brains in the world.

So mathematically, for success and happiness:

Positivity Index (PIx) >=Intelligence Quotient (IQ)

You might be successful in the short run (at times even in the long run) if IQ>PIx

But to lead a successful, happy and contented life, one must always strive to keep his PIx greater than IQ.

Your PIx has the power to control your IQ, your reflexes, your actions and reactions and thereby your whole life. It can keep you afloat in tsunami or can drown you in a swimming pool. It can create your enemies in solitude or friends in a war. It can create mountain of a hole or be undaunted of climbing Mt. Everest.  That is the power of your state of mind!!

A confident person with immense zeal and optimism, ready to take on the world with his fortitude and will power is what I call the “Master of Positivity” with a 100% PIx.

But maintaining good PIx is a continuous process. I will try to cover it in some other post.

Till then, keep working towards improving your PIx 🙂

I would like to finish with a beautiful poem called “Thinking” by Walter D. Wintle, which has motivated me throughout my life and helped me maintain my PIx 🙂

If you think you are beaten, you are;
If you think you dare not, you don’t.
If you’d like to win, but you think you can’t,
It is almost a cinch that you won’t.

If you think you’ll lose, you’re lost;
For out of the world we find
Success begins with a fellow’s will
It’s all in the state of mind.

If you think you’re outclassed, you are;
You’ve got to think high to rise.
You’ve got to be sure of yourself before
You can ever win the prize.

Life’s battles don’t always go
To the stronger or faster man;
But sooner or later the man who wins
Is the one who thinks he can!