Durban - Think for yourself in a world that wants to think for you.
That’s the lesson in a new book, Thoughtonomy, by award-winning Durban business owner, international speaker and coach Grant Gavin.
“Despite my own ‘success’, I have always doubted myself at every point of my journey. If I could live my life again, I would want to do it more confidently, backing my talents and abilities. Life should be a celebration of us all fulfilling our God-given talents and not a frustrating journey where we struggle constantly with our own limiting beliefs, insecurities, fears and self-doubt. In my own life and as a coach, I became frustrated watching how talented people would hold themselves back with their thinking and limiting beliefs. I wanted to help,” he said about why he wrote the book.
Gavin, a father of two children aged 12 and 15, owns RE/MAX Panache and has been recognised as the top broker/owner in the country four times.
“It’s your behaviours that impact the outcomes in your life, both positive and negative. If a blueprint exists for your success or happiness in life, business, and relationships, then why do we do what we do when we know there is a better way? The answer is that most of our behaviours are unconscious and are defined by our past conditioning and our emotions. Because most of our behaviour is unconscious, quite often, we do not know why we do what we do. The book raises awareness of this so that people who are currently frustrated with their current levels of success or happiness understand fundamentally that this is just not the way you are, but rather, it’s the way you have been conditioned to think,” he said.
He said people were responsible for all results in their lives.
“When you know who you are, you get to define what a successful or happy life means to you. When you don’t know who you are, society will define what success means to you,” he said.
He asks deep self-evaluating questions people should ask themselves.
“Are your thoughts and beliefs about yourself and the world around you serving you well for the life you want to live? What if these thoughts are fundamentally outdated for the modern world you live in today? And most importantly, if the way you think defines your behaviours and outcomes in your life, then what if these thoughts were not even yours, to begin with?” he said.
He said he used the power of relatable story-telling and gives four simple, easy-to-follow steps so people can find their way back to their authentic selves and start living the life they desire.
In a world of load shedding, poverty, unemployment and depression that is becoming a norm, his recommendation for people struggling to think positively is to first know who they are.
“Know who you are, love who you are, and figure out what you want. Learn how to manage your emotions when factors outside of your control impact your life. Run your race and avoid the trap of comparing yourself to others. Learn to block out the negativity that exists around you,” said Gavin.
The Independent on Saturday