BECOME UNSTOPPABLE Neuro Hack Your Brain: NEUROPLASTICITY IN ACTION THROUGH PROVEN NEUROSCIENCE HACKS TO IGNITE YOUR LIFE 9798620556793

Table of contents :
Dedications
Acknowledgments
Foreword
Chapter 1: How You Became Who You Are
Chapter 2: Neuroscience & The Amygdala Hijack
Chapter 3: Neuroscience Basics
Chapter 4: Neuro Hacks to Make You Unstoppable
Chapter 5: Goal Setting & Journal
Chapter 6: Anchors & Triggers
Chapter 7: Neuroscience & Hypnosis
Chapter 8: Bringing It All Together
Chapter 9: About the Author
Chapter 10: Index of Neuroscience Hacks

Citation preview

Copyright © 2020 Nick Matthews All rights reserved. ISBN - 13: 979-8-6205-5679-3 The content contained within this book may not be reproduced, duplicated or transmitted without the direct written permission from the author or the publisher. All effort has been made to present accurate and up to date and reliable information. No warranties of any kind are declared or implied. As I am unable to determine any possible medication or treatment you are undergoing at this time you are advised to seek, as you see fit, a professional medical advisor before attempting any techniques outlined in this book.

Dedications To Lin and Sally for their support. To Gaby and Adam, from Pulse Events, for their motivation and drive. To Bill Sawyer at Yarm Prep School for his belief in how an applied neuroscience approach can further develop children.

Contents Dedications Acknowledgments Foreword Chapter 1: How You Became Who You Are Chapter 2: Neuroscience & The Amygdala Hijack Chapter 3: Neuroscience Basics Chapter 4: Neuro Hacks to Make You Unstoppable Chapter 5: Goal Setting & Journal Chapter 6: Anchors & Triggers Chapter 7: Neuroscience & Hypnosis Chapter 8: Bringing It All Together Chapter 9: About the Author Chapter 10: Index of Neuroscience Hacks

Acknowledgments I would like to acknowledge the input and proof reading undertaken by Linda A. Matthews MSc, CIMA for her excellent teaching and forbearance.

Foreword As a race, humans have never been as out of touch with our planet than at any other time in the past. We no longer see or think as we once did. Even in the past 2 thousand years we have forgotten the secrets of our ancestors. We have taken what we wanted and intruded in the processes that delivers life on Earth. We have become increasingly aware only of our own interventions, and seemingly ignored the vast ecosystems that make life possible. We are losing our place in the world, in a profound sense and alienating ourselves from nature making it easier for nature to be destroyed, either on a planetary basis (climate change) or from a biological perspective (pandemics). This books focus is on how we can develop and better use our minds to change both our internal and external view of the world before it’s too late. In doing so a bye-product is delivering your latent potential to become UNSTOPPABLE in achieving what you want out of life. Using ancient eastern philosophy combined with cutting edge western neurological science this book delivers a paradigm shift. Your neurology can deliver you your greatest failure or your greatest success. Become Unstoppable and make sure it’s your greatest success Do you sabotage your own potential, happiness and success? Do you struggle to understand why you haven’t yet achieved your dreams?

Do your emotions cause you problems? In “BECOME UNSTOPPABLE” Nick Matthews MSc, CNHC, HPD, MNCH (Reg) presents a scientific-based neurological approach on how to “hack” your brain with innovative techniques. Using cutting edge NEUROPLASCTICITY research from his clinic Nick takes you through a proven, step by step, process to rewire how, and why, you think to provide you with unstoppable methodologies for achieving success in your life. This first-class book, for business, sports teams and individuals, explains in a revolutionary, clear and concise manner, why you are who you are and HOW TO OVERCOME PERFORMANCE AND LACK OF POTENTIAL ISSUES, AND BECOME AMAZINGLY SUCCESSFUL. Become Unstoppable through neuroplasticity is an incredible powerful mind operating technique that can help you realise latent potential, become happier, confident and more successful. Nick Matthews MSc, an Organizational Neurologist and outstanding coach explains the neurology that controls your everyday actions and emotions and how you can apply this understanding to: Recognise why you do what you do and it’s impacts on yourself, others and the planet Understand and manage your thoughts and emotions Become Unstoppable and become who you were meant to be Linda A Matthews MSc, CIMA

Chapter 1 How You Became Who You Are From birth, your brain is filled with trillions of neural links. These are physical electrical pathways that pass information around your body. Some of these messages we are aware of through negative thoughts that we constantly bombard ourselves with voices from what seems to be from the back of our head! Other messages are unconscious and we are not even aware of them. For instance, what makes you breathe or pump your blood around your system? What makes you react in a dangerous situation even before you have a chance to assess the danger? These all need messages for this work to occur. In addition, your values and beliefs are mainly unconscious and much of our behaviour and success is determined by these processes. It is these neural links or thought patterns that have been developed throughout your life that are determining your present position in life. This process runs in parallel with the brains ancient defence system controlled by the amygdala and thalamus. From birth your present map of the world was being set by your upbringing, your particular education and the values and beliefs of your family and friends. Your neural links were being set in a particular pattern and consequently in many people their behaviour and success was starting to become limited.

Your body receives millions of bits of information per second through your 5 senses; sight, hearing, feeling, smell and taste. Your neural links have set up your senses to filter out 99 % of this information coming to you every second. Accordingly, you generalize, delete and distort these messages to suit your reality and yet we know that this reality doesn’t exist! It is a construct of your existing view of the world. A view that has not, to date, delivered for you what you truly want out of life. The good news is that following this book will help you to develop new neural links so that your reality becomes wider, your choices will increase considerably, and your achievements will become realizable. You will become unstoppable! The description below details the process discussed above and in essence is how your thoughts, values and beliefs have created your present reality. How You Create Your Reality

Image by LhcCoutinho from Pixabay

Your reality of life is dictated by how and where you were raised as a

child. This developed your values and beliefs which you rely on to live by. As you go through life’s journey what you see, hear, taste feel and smell is deleted, distorted and generalized to fit your view of the world. This may not, to date have given you what you really want and certainly not delivered your latent potential. Accordingly, this reality, which you are not aware of, dictates how you walk, talk, look, sound and think. To change your reality and provide opportunities, for you to better consider you need to change your deletion, distortion and generalization filter system. These filters sit alongside your neurology, and we change your filters through your neurology. To change who and why you are and BECOME UNSTOPPABLE you need to change your filters and supporting neurology. This book will show you how to do this. The methodology within this book is a perfectly safe process, which we utilize on a daily basis without even knowing it; my breakthrough methodology just applies proven scientific structure into the change work. What science also tells us is that by growing positive neural links we will be increasing the usage of positive brain chemicals in the pre-frontal cortex, such as Dopamine, Serotonin and Oxytocin, which will improve your ability to process, analyze and follow this structured program. At the same time, and as your neural links grow, you will be reducing the amount of negative chemicals such as cortisol from the ancient flight or fight part of the brain called the amygdala. Indeed, evidence has shown that you will physically reduce the size of the amygdala reducing its negative impact even further.

What Can I Expect From This book? Individuals often know instinctively that something is perhaps not as it should be or, in extreme cases, very wrong! It takes courage to address these issues head on and I congratulate you on making that stand. You will not regret it! If you follow this book, then your life will change. The extent to which this change will happen depends on: How much you want it to happen That you believe that you can make the changes you desire – I will give you the neuro hacks and the confidence to do this The willingness to let go and see where this guide takes you – you may believe that you know what is wrong and what needs to be addressed however this is likely to be just a symptom of other or perhaps larger issues lurking beneath the surface that you are not yet consciously aware. Do not get frustrated with the progress – this book is designed to make you unstoppable by practicing a series of scientifically proven neuroscience brain hacks. Our mind is our bodies first line of defence. It will protect you at all costs which makes change so challenging. Its role is to make sense of your reality to keep you safe by ensuring you have a response to cope with any given situation that you find yourself. If you did not have then then you would get overwhelmed and your mind body would shut down as the ultimate defence!

The solutions or opportunities that your mind offers you will not, however, be perfect and in some cases, they are inappropriate and even hold you back from your true destiny. This is not malicious or even by intent. Our mind acts in a similar way to Artificial Intelligence, it learns and grows based on inputs and responses it has learnt from us, typically up to the age of 7. It is this age period where our are minds grow at their fastest rate – they are like sponges acquiring the knowledge and experiences on which we will rely throughout our lives. Our mind takes those experiences and attributes emotions to them – you will no doubt recall feelings of excitement, nervousness, trepidation when you come across something that you have never experienced before. How can this be? Our minds take scenario’s and experiences from our childhood and the emotions that we attached to them at the time. It then groups experience it considers “similar” and attributes the same or similar emotions. These emotions may be incorrect or misplaced. As a child we often respond to the reaction of those around us and take on those same emotions. Consider when a child falls, they look around to see how the parent reacts. If the parent laughs off the fall then the child, generally, will do the same (assuming no serious injury has been sustained). If the opposite is true, then the child is likely to get distressed. Either way the brain registers the emotion linked to the event for future reference. The same applies across a spectrum of experiences and external influences. Some are conscious and some take external interventions later in life to even trace, as they have not registered at a conscious level. As we travel through life our minds offer proposals of how to deal with

different aspects of our lives based on these initial responses. The more we utilize these proposals the stronger the brains neural links embed these into our day to day decision making strengthening until we accept them as a natural response. You should now be realizing that some of the decisions you have made during your life have been based on “flawed” logic or “programming” and, had our earlier responses been different, our current reality from our journey of decisions could have been very different! This is why you are here now! Depending on these impacts of your decisions on your life the potential transformation you are now facing could range from pleasant to off the planet. Let’s see how it goes! You will now be presented with a basic understanding of how neuroscience impacts on who and why you are. This is followed by many neuro hacks to re program your brain to make you unstoppable. Do not question these exercises, they are set out in the format and sequence they are for a reason – go with the flow and let’s meet up on the other side! One more note of caution before you begin! As with any new experience such as:

Learning to walk Learning to talk Learning to ride a bike Learning to drive a car Learning a new skill Exercise Relationships Career It is awkward at first, often challenging however if we look back it does not seem so. We often fell down but, in the end, we can barely remember what the problem was. That is the same with this book. We are all different and it will take less or more time and effort for each of us. There is no right, or wrong answer and we are all complex beings and unique – our journey is individual to us. You will get to where you need to be if you persevere. Do not give up. Even when you get there, that is not the end of your journey. Have you ever gone on a diet or taken an exercise regime to achieve a specific goal – a wedding, a night out, a holiday? You achieve the goal and then leave it to the next big event. Did you maintain that optimum weight or muscle tone? No! Did you expect to – probably not! This book is exactly the same. To maintain stability in anything you need to keep practicing – exercise, driving, learning a language. As the saying goes “Do it or lose it!”. The same applies here – you are just using different muscles. Once you are happy with where you are then we need to put anchors and triggers in place to keep you there or to keep you moving forward. More on this Chapter 6.

Having considered our psychological filters, we will now turn to our neurological make up.

Chapter 2 Neuroscience & The Amygdala Hijack Understanding the functions of the brain and how they interact is key to completing a successful paradigm shift. You need to recognise the signs and what to do about them. This Chapter considers 2 aspect of your neurology: Neural Plasticity and a phenomenon called The Amygdala Hijack. The latter term was first coined by Daniel Goleman in his work on emotional intelligence. In Chapter 4 you will learn how to manipulate both of these aspects to achieve real and sustainable success. For now, though we will discuss both in turn. Neuroplasticity Your brain is the most complex piece of engineering in the known universe. Moreover, everyone’s brain is essentially the same and yet completely unique. The brains function is to govern your bodies systems, regulate your emotions and attach events to them as recognized by the five senses. In doing so your brain creates meaning, making you the totally individual person that you are. You may ask why does success and happiness come more readily to some rather than others? This is a key question that I will be answering within this book along with the knowledge on how to get what you want. Although we are born with five senses, we have no natural ability for making sense of other people who in turn are trying to make sense of us.

Accordingly, the brain looks for certainties in the way we should respond, and this is a result of our values and beliefs, memories and events all linked to emotions. These certainties from the brain’s perspective form our neural links and as we go through life these links get reinforced. This is why we always seem to do what we have always done and consequently get what we always get! There is no template about how things should be, the brain makes us respond to its view of the world and how we should react with it. This is the reason that real change or paradigm shift is so difficult. Whilst the thought of change to achieve dreams is easily accepted within an individual the truth is that real change requires the reduction in old neural links that maintain the brain in a particular emotional way of thinking and acting, and the production of new ones. Our brains are constantly being shaped by experience. Most of us have very different behaviours and thoughts today than we did 10 years ago. This shift is neuroplasticity working; changes in brain structure and organisation as we experience, learn, and adapt. With every repetition of a thought or emotion, we reinforce a neural pathway and with each new thought, we begin to create a new way of being. These small changes, frequently enough repeated, lead to changes in how our brains work. Neuroplasticity can be best explained by the things we do often we become stronger at, and what we don’t use fades away. That is the physical basis of

why making a thought or action over and over again increases its power. Over time, it becomes an unconscious habit along with automatic responses; a part of us. We literally become what we think and do. Neuroplasticity is at work throughout life. Connections within the brain are constantly becoming stronger or weaker, depending on what is being used. Younger people change more easily; their brains are very plastic. As we age change doesn't come as easily; the brain loses some of its plasticity and we become more fixed in how we think, learn, and perceive. Since the brain is pivotal to all we think and do, by harnessing neuroplasticity we can improve everything we do and think. This book uses neurofeedback fundamental principles of neuroplasticity to help you take control of your mind and in doing so your goals and dreams. The Amygdala Hijack The amygdala is the gateway to the emotional centre of your brain. Made up of 2 almond shaped groups of neurons one in each of your temporal lobes they are built into the depths of the brain and linked into all parts of your system. This is where emotions are given meaning, remembered, and attached to associations and responses to them. Like the most advanced computer in the world combined with an almost alien detection system their function is to assess every single scrap of information. These could be flickering thoughts, sights, smells, taste, touches or sounds for its emotional assessment and storage. In nanoseconds the amygdala assigns an emotional stimulus to each and every piece of data and produces a new neural link. If that link is already

there the link is reinforced. As the link becomes stronger the more difficult it is to avoid the associated activity that the amygdala forces your body to respond to. You see the amygdala is a prediction machine and in recognizing patterns it will evoke a habitual response fully supported by an associated neuro chemical release. As you grow older your neural database becomes a crucial component for the construction of who you are and ultimately who you will become and what you will achieve. This book is designed to help you make the necessary sustainable changes to your neurology. Fight or Flight Response Early humans were exposed to the constant threat of being killed or injured by wild animals or other tribes. To improve the chances of survival, the fightor-flight response evolved. It’s an automatic response to physical danger that allows you to react quickly without thinking. When you feel threatened and afraid, the amygdala automatically activates the fight-or-flight response by sending out signals to release stress hormones that prepare your body to fight or run away. This response is triggered by emotions like guilt, fear, anxiety, aggression, and anger. Cerebal Cortex The cortex are the two large areas at the front of your brain. They are part of the cerebral cortex, which is a newer, rational, and more advanced brain system. This is where thinking, reasoning, decision-making, and planning happen. The frontal lobes allow you to process and think about your emotions. You can then manage these emotions and determine a logical

response. Unlike the automatic response of the amygdala, the response to fear from your frontal lobes is consciously controlled by you. When you sense danger is present, your amygdala wants to automatically activate the fight-or-flight response immediately. However, at the same time, your frontal lobes are processing the information to determine if danger really is present and the most logical response to it. When the threat is mild or moderate, the frontal lobes override the amygdala, and you respond in the most rational, appropriate way. However, when the threat is perceived as strong, the amygdala acts quickly. It overpowers the frontal lobes, automatically triggering the fight-or-flight response. The fight-or-flight response was appropriate for early humans because of threats of physical harm. Today, there are far fewer physical threats, but there are a lot of psychological threats caused by the pressures and stresses of modern life. When stress makes you feel strong anger, aggression, or fear, the fight-or-flight response is activated. It often results in a sudden, illogical, and irrational overreaction to the situation. You may even regret your reaction later. A psychologist named Daniel Goleman called this overreaction to stress “amygdala hijack” in his 1995 book, “Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ.” It happens when a situation causes your amygdala to hijack control of your response to stress. The amygdala disables the frontal lobes and activates the fight-or-flight response. Without the frontal lobes, you can’t think clearly, make rational decisions, or control your responses. Control has been “hijacked” by the amygdala.

The symptoms of amygdala hijack are due to the effects of the two stress hormones: cortisol and adrenaline. Both hormones are released from your adrenal glands to prepare your body to run or fight. Cortisol is a steroid hormone that affects many of your body’s functions, including preparing it for the fight-or-flight response. The main job of adrenaline, also called epinephrine, is to stimulate your body systems so they’re ready to respond to a threat. Stress hormones, primarily adrenaline, do a number of things you may not notice, including: Relax your airways, opening them up so you can take in more oxygen Increase the blood flow to your muscles for maximum speed and strength Increase your blood sugar for more energy Dilate your pupils to enhance your vision Symptoms you may notice include: Rapid heartbeat Sweaty palms Goose bumps on your skin After an amygdala hijack, you may feel regret or embarrassment because your behaviour may have been inappropriate or irrational. Moreover, even if the amygdala hasn’t hijacked your brain as a result of a fight or flight activity it is still controlling how and why you do what you do. Even if you don’t

recognise an amygdala hijack or you perhaps confuse it with something else it is important to be aware that your neurology is being reinforced in a pattern that probably does not support your goals and dreams. We will consider how you can stop an amygdala hijack in Chapter 4.

Chapter 3 Neuroscience Basics Let’s take a look at what we are attempting to achieve by neuro hacking your brain. This book will help you to change the balance of positive and negative chemicals in the brain that are produced naturally. In doing so you will change the way you think, act and what you can therefore achieve. Each of the neuro hacks will help you to consider different aspects of your neurology. People are different and they react in different ways to different things so some of the hacks will relate to you as an individual some will not. Not to worry just follow the hacks that suit you as they all lead to the same objective – making you unstoppable. We have already learned that from birth, your brain is filled with billions upon billions of neural links. These are physical electrical pathways that pass information around your body and are the keys to understanding the way your brain gets organized and why it is entirely to do with relationships, both internal and external. The task of the growing brain is to get itself well activated through relationships and it does this through neuro chemical reactions. The more these reactions take place the stronger the connection and the faster the response. In addition, the reactions convert electrical stimuli into a chemical action positive or

negative. The main neurochemicals are to do with attachment, motivation, feeling good, pleasure and pain relief. Attachment is fueled by oxytocin which evokes feelings of contentment, reduces anxiety and fear and creates feelings of calmness and security. Motivation is closely linked to arousal and dopamine levels which give us physical motivation. Feeling good is the purpose of serotonin and manages mood and anxiety. Pleasure or happiness occurs through noradrenaline. There are many more naturally occurring chemicals in the brain but the ones mentioned are the main players in directing messages around your body determining how you feel and how you react to any given situation. Some of these messages we pass around the body we are aware of through negative thoughts that we constantly bombard ourselves with voices from what seems to be from the back of our head! Other messages are unconscious and we are not even aware of them. For instance, what makes you breathe or pump your blood around your system? These all need messages for this work to occur efficiently. Your values and beliefs are mainly unconscious and much of our behaviour and success is determined by these processes. This is the root of the neurological paradigm. Increase Positive Chemical Release Within Your Neurology Studies show that the more one releases serotonin, dopamine and oxytocin,

the easier it becomes to do so. That has certainly been my experience in practicing these brain chemical-releasing activities. If you can do all you'll be a neurological master! Serotonin Adjust your diet. The Mediterranean diet is especially beneficial for boosting happiness because omega-3 fats, vitamin B12, zinc, magnesium, and iron boost brain health while lowering inflammation. Consistent, good sleep is essential. Poor sleep affects your body’s ability to use or make serotonin. Sleep deprivation affects the brain’s serotonin receptors, making them not as sensitive to the positive effects of serotonin. Accordingly, you should try to get between seven to eight hours of good sleep a night. Take additional vitamin D. Vitamin D deficiencies along with omega-3 fatty acids help facilitate serotonin production. You might want to have a chat with your doctor to see if a vitamin D supplement is something that might help your current physiological state. Another way to supplement your vitamin D is by spending some time outside and take in some sunshine, which is why many people tend to feel a drop in mood during the winter months. If you’re feeling down, try making afternoon walks a prioritize to up the amount of vitamin D you’re getting, which in turn will help boost your serotonin levels. Stress impacts with your serotonin levels. It can indirectly result in damage to neurons that produce serotonin or the other parts of the brain

that are involved and the serotoninic pathways that make the system work less effectively. Prioritizing self-care, mindfulness, and other stress-reduction tactics contained within this book will go a long way towards better health, including better serotonin levels. Dopamine Eat foods rich in Tyrosine. In order to make dopamine, your body needs tyrosine which can be found in almonds, bananas, avocados, eggs, beans, fish, and chicken. Exercise regularly. In general, physical exercise is one of the best things you can do for your brain. It increases the production of new brain cells, slows down brain cell aging, can increase your levels of dopamine. Exercise has also been associated with improved mood and overall a better outlook on life. Learn to meditate. The overall health benefits of meditation have been demonstrated through hundreds of research studies. Many of those have shown that meditation increases dopamine leading to improved focus and concentration. Even if you’re new to meditation, there are many helpful guided meditations for beginners to help you get started contained within this book. Get a massage. It has long been suggested that one way to keep dopamine levels high is to avoid stress, which is nearly impossible in this day and age. To counter the effects of stress, research has demonstrated that massage therapy increases dopamine levels by nearly 30% while decreasing cortisol (a stress hormone) levels.

Sleep. To ensure that your brain increases dopamine naturally, you’ll want to make sure that you’re getting enough sleep. This includes setting aside time before bed away from the computer or TV screen. Sleep helps all the cells in the body repair and renew. It gives the brain a chance to wash away toxins that build up during the day and helps keep the nerve cell connections and pathways active and constantly self-renewing. Lack of sleep has been shown to reduce concentrations of neurotransmitters, including dopamine, and their receptors. Listen to music. It is no surprise that listening to calming music can increase pleasurable feelings, improve mood, reduce stress, and help with focus and concentration. Research has demonstrated that much of this is achieved due to an increase in dopamine levels. Ashwagandha and panax ginseng combined with decaffeinated green tea and choline to promote improved focus and increased energy while enhancing endurance and stamina. The perfect way naturally increases dopamine levels to feel help you feel energized, productive, and alert. Oxytocin Listen with your eyes. Instead of being glued to an electronic device, give the person with you your complete attention. Watch their face and listen to what he or she is telling you. Be aware that communication is mainly body language (over 50%) and tonality (40%) along with the actual words which make up less than 10% of the message you are receiving (or giving).

Give a gift. Our first human oxytocin studies showed that receiving gifts raised oxytocin. Why not make this a regular practice? The key is not to expect a gift in return, just surprise someone for no reason. Share a meal. Eating moderately is calming and helps us bond with others. Including a glass of wine is fine, too. You can increase the effect by following the point above and making the meal you share a gift. Soak in a hot bubble bath and dwell on life. Use social media. You might be doing this anyway, but you should know that 100% of the people I tested using social media had an increase in oxytocin. Just don't forget to see your Facebook friends in person, too. Ride a roller coaster or jump out of an airplane. Many activities that are moderately stressful and done with one or more other people raise oxytocin. My recent parachute jumps produced a greater than 200% oxytocin spike. Try being a single rider on a roller coaster and you'll experience an immediate bond with the person next to you. Pet a dog (or a cat). This doesn't always work unless the dog belongs to you, but if you identify as a "dog person," any old dog will raise your oxytocin. The dog won't complain, either. And once your oxytocin is up, you'll connect better to the humans around you, too. Tell those around you that you love them. Oxytocin is the love

molecule, so it is part of our evolved biology to love others. You've got to put it out there to get it back. With friends, too, and maybe even at work. Eight hugs a day. We have shown that touch not only raises oxytocin, but it reduces cardiovascular stress and can improve the immune system, too. Try telling people that you hug rather than shake hands and see what happens when you give others the gift of oxytocin. Noradrenaline or Norepinephrine Noradrenaline or sometimes called Norepinephrine levels are naturally increased through exercise, diet and supplements. Please consult your doctor about symptoms you feel are related to norepinephrine or any other naturally occurring brain chemicals to get the right diagnosis before starting a treatment plan Exercise is one of the best ways to improve overall health, and research shows that exercise improves norepinephrine function. Research shows that regular aerobic exercise improved depression. Exercise improves depression because it increases the brain's production of galanin, a peptide neurotransmitter which regulates production of norepinephrine. Consuming certain foods increases levels of norepinephrine. The amino acid tyrosine is necessary to produce norepinephrine and is available in foods that contain protein. Foods that contain high levels of tyrosine include almonds, bananas, avocados, dairy products, pumpkin seeds, sesame seeds and lima beans. Avoid overeating, which produces sluggishness, counteracting the positive mental effects of

norepinephrine production. The amino acid supplements L-tyrosine and L-phenylalanine increase norepinephrine production, but must be used cautiously, especially if you are bipolar. Only take one of these supplements at a time and start with a low dose. Ask your doctor if it is ok to use these supplements before taking them. In addition, vitamins B6, B3, folic acid, C and minerals iron and copper are necessary for efficient norepinephrine production. B vitamins are especially important to take if you have a high stress lifestyle.

Chapter 4 Neuro Hacks to Make You Unstoppable This is the main section of the book and where most of your learning will take place. We have already discovered what brain chemicals we are aiming to increase or decrease and each of these hacks will help you unlock your neurology and re-program your neurol links. Some of these neuro hacks are quite short, in a few cases less than a paragraph in length. Others are several pages long and include in depth meditations to support the hack. All will improve your progress towards becoming unstoppable. Neuro Hack #1: Universal Facts of Your Life You have a mind and body. You may like them or not, but they’re yours for life – this time around! You will learn lessons. You have the opportunity to learn more lessons. You may like the lessons or not either way they are lessons and if you don’t like them change the way you think about them. There is no failure, only feedback. Mental growth is a process of trial and error experimentation. Any “failures” are as part of the process as the successful solution. Lessons need to be repeated until they are learned. Importantly you must understand that a lesson will be presented to you in various forms until you have learned it. You then go on to the next lesson. Learning does not end as long as you are alive.

There is nothing better than where you are until you have learned the reasons for being where you are. Anything that looks better is an illusion and a distraction. Everyone has the resources within themselves to deliver the life they want, what you choose to do with them is up to you. You can’t love or hate something about another person unless it reflects to you something you love or hate about yourself. Life begins at the end of your comfort zone. You have a brain that took thousands of millions of years to create. Unfortunately, it doesn’t come with an instruction manual. That’s why I wrote this book. Neuro Hack #2: Meditation and Other Brain-Calming Practice – Including Mindfulness Body Scan Script Meditation has quickly taken root in the world of business and fast-paced entrepreneurial communities desperate for mental clarity. It’s been found that meditation practices can do everything from lowering anxiety to increasing productivity. Meditation has also been found to increase feelings of self-esteem and cognitive function and can improve our brains’ ability to focus. Here is a script that I use on a daily basis. It’s called the mindfulness body scan – try recording it in a slow voice and play it back. Please don’t drive or operate machinery when using this meditation! Mindfulness Body Scan This script (in italics) is loosely based upon the "body scan" method

popularized recently by Jon Kabat-Zinn and incorporated into mindfulnessbased Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT). However, virtually identical techniques were documented by Fritz Perls (1951) within the field of Gestalt Therapy. Cooke and van Vogt (1956) also document a similar "body awareness" exercise in use by hypnotherapists as far back as the 1950s. The aim of this technique is to increase non-judgmental self-awareness. It does this by systematically developing proprioceptive awareness, i.e., awareness of bodily sensations. It can be done seated, though it is perhaps best done lying down. You may fall asleep during this exercise, especially when lying down. It's better if you can remain awake, but as it's not unusual to drift off from time to time, don't worry if this happens. Resting your fingers on your belly will help increase your awareness of your breathing, as will wearing ear plugs. This script should be read slightly more slowly than normal, to allow you the time to consider your experiences. Preamble Take a moment to settle into your posture and make yourself comfortable. Close your eyes. [Pause]. Your goal in this meditation is to become deeply self-aware. Aware first of your body, and then of your mind, make it your aim, step by step, to contemplate things as deeply as possible. Self-awareness can become a pathway to deeper self-control and self-mastery. Incorporation For the sake of this meditation, welcome any sounds you hear or sensations you feel as part of the process. Don't try to concentrate, block things from your mind, or force yourself to relax. Just allow yourself to acknowledge anything that passes through your awareness and treat it as an opportunity to

deepen your mindfulness by patiently observing how you react, moment by moment, to various experiences. Do your best to stay awake however, even if you fall asleep that's okay, you will still get some benefit. In other words, just go with the flow of things, you can analyze and evaluate things later, for now just keep patiently bringing your awareness back to the present moment, the here and now of your experience. Unconditional Acceptance From time to time it may help to imagine that you are gently smiling to yourself inside. Perhaps even allowing a hint of a smile to spread across your face and eyes. Accepting all of your experiences and feeling contentment and happiness, here in the present moment. Continue to feel self-acceptance, and warmth toward yourself. Forget about the past, forget about the future, forget about everything else and rest your mind on the flow of your awareness. Whole Body Awareness Now, begin by being aware of the whole of your body as one. From the top of your head, all the way down into your fingers and down into your toes. Be aware of your whole body as one, every nerve, muscle and fibre. Don't try to change anything; don't try to stop anything from changing. Sometimes things change just by being observed. Self-awareness brings natural harmony and balance back into the body. Be as passive, as detached observer, just be contented to notice what you notice, feel what you feel. From time to time take a few moments of silence to deepen your contemplation in your own way. Take a few moments now to become more aware of your whole body as one. [Pause] Mindfulness of Breathing

Now, allow your breath to guide you deeper into self-awareness. Notice the sensations of your breathing, notice the belly, rise and fall. [Pause] Notice the chest, rise and fall, the rib cage expanding and relaxing. [Pause] Notice even the faintest sensations, even the tiniest feelings caused by the breath, around the sides of the waist, the sides of the chest, and beside the arms. Perhaps, if you pay deep attention to the breath, you may even notice some feelings in the lower back, the upper back, the neck and shoulders, maybe even sensations elsewhere in the body that accompany the breathing. [Pause] Now be aware of the whole process of breathing and of the sensations as one. Be aware of the rhythm of the breath. Don't try to change the breathing, don't try to stop it from changing, just be a passive observer and let the body do the breathing, all by itself. If your mind wanders, that's okay, just keep bringing it back to your breathing. That cycle of spotting when your mind wanders, calmly accepting the fact non-judgmentally and patiently bringing it back to the here and now, the flow of your experience, is the essence of mindfulness. [Pause] Now let the breath guide you deeper into awareness of the body. Imagine that with each and every breath, your awareness is expanding, growing deeper and deeper, becoming more and more comfortably absorbed in the heart of the body, the here and now. Turn your attention to the sensations in your legs and begin at the top with the hips, joints and thigh muscles. Be aware both of your breathing and of the sensations in your hips, let your awareness spread over the surface of your skin, deep into the muscles and even into the bones and joints. Now let your awareness spread slowly down through the thighs, on through the upper legs, down, deep into the knees, through the lower legs, the calves and shins, ankles and down into the feet, over each of the toes, one by one, into the very soles of the feet, into the many bones of the feet. Be

aware of both legs now, as one. Imagine your breath deepening your awareness of the sensations in the legs, both legs in parallel. Let the breath guide your awareness, deeper and deeper into the body, your mind becoming more patiently absorbed in even the smallest feelings, here and now. Turn your attention now to the arms. Begin at the top, deep inside the shoulder joints and muscles, let your awareness grow deeper as it spreads over the shoulders into the upper arms, down deep into the elbow joints, through the forearms, down into the wrists, the hands the knuckles, the fingers through each of the fingers in turn, one by one, into the many bones of the hands. Be aware of both arms now, as one. Imagine your breath deepening your awareness of the sensations in the arms, both arms in parallel. Let the breath guide your awareness, deeper and deeper into the body, your mind becoming more patiently absorbed in even the smallest feelings, here and now. Become aware of the arms and legs together, as one. Imagine every breath is gently deepening and expanding your awareness of the body. Now turn your attention to the trunk of the body, begin at the top, deep between the neck and shoulders. Let your awareness grow as it spreads deep between the shoulder blades, down through every segment of your backbone in turn, over and under the ribs, deep into the chest, right down into the belly, deep into very core of the body. Become aware of the whole trunk of the body as one. Imagine your breath deepening your awareness of the sensations in the chest and abdomen, in the very core of the body, guiding your awareness deeper and deeper into the body, your mind becoming more patiently absorbed in even the smallest feelings, here and now.

Next, turn your attention to the head and neck. Begin at the top, the crown of the head let your awareness expand gently over the scalp and down the back of the neck, spreading across the forehead and down over the temples, the cheeks, over the mouth, into the eyes. Be aware of the whole of the head, neck, and face, as one. Imagine your breath deepening your awareness of the sensations in the head and neck, the facial expression, the look in the eyes, guiding your awareness deeper and deeper into the body, becoming more patiently absorbed in even the smallest feelings, here and now. Mindfulness of Breathing - Whole Body Now become aware once again of the body as a whole, the body as one. Become aware of your breathing and imagine the breath is guiding your awareness of the whole body, continuously deeper. Let your body do the breathing. Let go. Let the breathing draw your awareness deeper into the body, more absorbed in the body as a whole. If your mind wanders, that's okay, just patiently bring it back to your breathing. Now take a few moments to contemplate the flow of your experiences more deeply, in your own way. [Pause] Now turn your attention even deeper, toward your mind, to consciousness itself, all the time aware of your breathing. The breath is the mirror of the emotions. When you are emotional people can usually hear it in the sound of your voice, the sound of your breath channeled through your vocal cords. When the body is tense the breath is tense, when relaxed the breath is relaxed. Be aware right now of the mood of the breath. The emotional tone and character of your breathing pattern. Take a few moments to contemplate your emotions and your breath more deeply, in your own way, in silence. [Pause]

Now turn your attention to your thinking. Emotions are the space within which thoughts grow. Emotions shape our thinking, our mood colours our thinking and our thoughts, in turn, can influence our mood. Become more aware of your thoughts, judgements, attitudes, opinions, and beliefs, of anything you say to yourself, in your mind. Become mindful even of unspoken thoughts at the back of your mind. Notice deliberate thoughts, or one's that just happen to cross your mind. Don't judge them just accept the fact that they are happening and allow yourself to become a detached observer of your own stream of consciousness. Notice in particular, how you respond to your thoughts, as they occur, moment by moment, how you feel about them as they happen. Now take a few moments to contemplate your thoughts and feelings more deeply, in your own way, in silence. [Pause] Dissociation You have a body, but you are more than your body. You have emotions, but you are more than your emotions. You have desires, but you are more than your desires. You have thoughts, but you are more than your thoughts. You are much more than any of these things and you can step back and observe them, even things that seemed very close to your centre, you can distance and detach yourself from everything and just watch the flow of your experiences. You are more than anything you can observe. Now take a few moments to contemplate your breathing, in your own way, and to become a detached observer of whatever enters your mind. [Pause] Emerging

In a moment you are going to finish this meditation and move ahead, into the room around you, and the tasks at hand. Bringing a sense of deep selfawareness and inner calm into your life and into your actions. [Pause] Think about the room around you. Think about action, movement, think about looking around and getting your bearings, raising your head a little. Now begin to breathe a little bit more deeply a little bit more energetically, let your body feel more alive and ready for action. Breathe energy into your body breathe a little deeper and deeper again. Until you're ready to take a deep breath, open your eyes, and emerge slowly from meditation, taking your mindfulness and self-awareness forward into life. Beginning now, take a deep breath and open your eyes now, when you're ready. Neuro Hacks Help You To Learn Faster

Neuro Hack #3: Emotional Mastery Emotional Intelligence (EQ) theory that was developed during the 1970s and 80s by the work and writings of psychologists Howard Gardner (Harvard), Peter Salovey (Yale) and John 'Jack' Mayer (New Hampshire) is increasingly relevant to those people looking to breakthrough a number of areas of their lives. The EQ principles provide a new innovative way to understand and assess people's behaviours, approaches, attitudes and relationship skills. In essence, EQ development considers the individual, how they interact with themselves and others, and puts in place a new, more positive set of neural links that supports improvement in internal and external relationship skills across all areas.

The EQ concept argues that conventional intelligence, is too narrow; that there are wider areas of our behaviours that dictate and enable how successful we are in life. In addition, the EQ theory fits like a glove with the development of neurological change. Success requires more than just a quick fix which has tended to be the traditional approach of coaches ignoring essential behavioural and character elements. We've all met people who are academically brilliant and yet are socially and inter-personally inept. And we know that despite possessing a high intelligence, life and relationship success does not automatically follow. This hack will help you grow as an individual and achieve your goals. How many times have you seen an outburst between people or witnessed those uncomfortable self-conscious moments that have ultimately led to a relationship breakdown? Internal management and external awareness development can significantly improve your chances of achieving your dreams particularly when the pressure is on. There are 4 key skills to develop: Internal Awareness: Your ability to accurately perceive your own emotions and stay aware of them as they happen. This includes keeping on top of how you tend to respond to specific situations and interactions with partners or other people. Internal Awareness Hacks: Practice watching your emotions in great detail – use your journal as detailed in Chapter 5.

Observe what you are feeling and doing as the situation unfolds. Keep ahead of your emotions to maintain objectivity Practice observing and recognizing your emotions in the “moment” to learn your response patterns. Monitor your thoughts and physiology that accompany a particular feeling. These are not the feelings themselves, but the thoughts and sensations that got with them. Do you sweat? Do your thoughts race? Does your mind go blank? Does your heart beat fast? Does your throat tighten? Do you shake? Do you feel tense? Do you get tunnel vision? Do you feel numb? Discover what negative behaviours you fall victim to. Do you? Make decisions you regret? Interrupt people or speak out? Try to escape situations? Fidget? Avoid eye contact? Cry at inappropriate times Raise your voice? Doubt yourself The surprising thing about increasing Self-Awareness is that just thinking about it will help you change, even though you are focusing on things you do “wrong”. Moreover, ineffective emotional responses usually happen beneath our awareness. If you understand your tendencies, you are more likely to choose a better response.

Emotional Behaviours: Your ability to use awareness of your emotions to stay flexible and positively direct your behaviour. This means managing your emotional reactions to all situations and people. Take an honest look when you are being overwhelmed by your feelings. Discover where your emotions get the best of you. You may feel: Passive, Intense, Restless, Numb Impulsive, Oblivious, Jaded, Confused Frustrated, Spaced, Exhausted, Distracted Make a note here of those situations where your emotions have got the better of you:

Learn to notice when you are feeling the above emotions and take time before taking action. When your emotions are strong you need to slow down and think before moving forward. Importantly, ignoring or minimizing what you are feeling will allow your emotions to control the situation.

Use strategies to help manage your reactions to emotionally arousing situations. In particular, listen, step back, breathe. For the medium to long term set aside some time during the day for problem solving, reflection and decision making. Consider the stoic approach in Chapter 7. Think about where your emotions are coming from, what are your boundaries that others may cross? External Awareness: Your ability to accurately pick up on emotions in other people and get what is really going on. This often means understanding what other people are thinking and feeling even if you don’t feel the same way. External Awareness Hacks Play the anthropologist – when around people spend specific time observing, asking and listening without letting your thoughts and feelings disturb the situation. You will be surprised what you notice about others when your mind is more on them than on you! See if you can make a connection between what the other person is feeling and what they are doing, ask questions to clarify. It will help if you practice with a friend to see if you are accurately picking up on what they are feeling. In particular, the next time they tell you about something they experienced or something that is important to them check your perception, ask questions that you would normally not ask during a conversation, and check if they were attempting to deliver any unspoken messages. When you and your friend are in group situations check your perceptions on what is going on – great fun! If you look hard enough you will often notice a mood in the room. In the past

you will have likely done this instinctively. Look for similarities, matching, mirroring etc. Emotional Maturity: Your ability to use your awareness of your emotions and the emotions of others to manage interactions successfully. This includes clear communication and effectively handling conflict. Emotional Maturity Hacks Discover the role emotions play in every situation! Understand that emotions play a part in every interaction between 2 people. Whether the mood is good or bad, excited or bored think about how it is influencing the “back and forth” between you and the other person. Spot when your emotions are making things difficult! Discussions, debates and negotiations sometimes stall for no apparent reason. This is usually when personal attachment is getting in the way of resolution. You will continue to argue until you address your interest or other emotional involvement in the difficult topic. When it is the other persons emotions getting in the way, address what they are feeling without being threatening or making them defensive. When you care show it! When you have genuine interest in someone, don’t hide it, even if there

are only certain things you like about the person. People like people who like them. Always save time for small talk. A little bit of effort goes a long long way Balance sharing questions with the other person. Get real feedback from someone you trust! Ask your friend to share with you what they see and think. The following questions will help: What do I have the knack for that helps me get along with people? Is there a way I could use this skill more often? What holds me back from relating as well as I could to others? Is there anything I do too much of? Or not enough of? Neuro Hack #4: Reciprocal Neurology Hacks You are hard wired for reciprocal behaviours! This means that when you have a thought you normally produce a physical reaction in your body. However, most of the time you don’t notice this. Getting to understand how this works is a major step to hacking your neurology to make you unstoppable. I teach the following hacks to all of my students and clients: Tip of the tongue As you think and in particular practice self-talk you will notice (try it if you haven’t noticed this yet) that there is a reciprocal movement of your tongue –

the organ of speech. To stop self -talk especially if it is negative talk or perhaps you can’t get to sleep you need to stop your tongue moving! To do this place the tip of your tongue firmly behind the back of your upper teeth. This will cause a reciprocal quieting of your brain – your self-talk will stop, QED. Pencil in the teeth Your unconscious picks up on both your posture and your mannerisms. Moreover, it can’t detect these with precision. Accordingly, you can trick your unconscious into producing positive chemicals based on its understanding of your posture and your facial expressions. A great hack is to place a pencil between your teeth and keep it away from your lips. Your unconscious thinks you are smiling and produces dopamine and serotonin to give you a reciprocal boost. This is great for those stress moments. The Learning State Before we commence the learning it’s important to move our conscious physiology into one that best supports that learning. I call it the “Learning State”. In the learning state we can change our delete, distort and generalize filter system to allow in information that we might normally delete, generalize or distort to suit our existing view of the world. This allows us to take on board new information in a much more efficient way. While facing straight ahead, pick a spot on the ceiling or wall to look at. This spot is preferably above eye level so that your field of vision seems to bump up against your eyebrows. Your eyes should not be so high as to cut off the field of vision.

As you stare at this spot, just let your mind go loose, and focus all of your attention on the spot. Notice that within a matter of moments, your vision begins to spread out, and you see more in the peripheral than you do in the central part of your vision. Now, pay attention to the peripheral. In fact, pay more attention to the peripheral than to the central part of your vision. Let your peripheral vision expand all around you. Stay in this state for as long as you choose. Notice how it feels. Notice the feeling inside. Do the same for sounds, taste and smells. This state can be used for learning when you are 100% focused on the external things around you this is called uptime. In this state you will learn expand your external awareness. You will notice that you are moving out of this state as you start to talk to yourself and think about other things in your life apart from your learning. With practice you will maintain this focused state for hours. To move back into the uptime state re-focus on that spot and expand your peripheral vision out again. The opposite state of uptime is downtime when your thoughts are focused 100% inwards. This is a time for relaxation and exploring your thoughts and imagination. You can explore this more as you use the meditation scripts provided with this book. Neuro Hack #5: Proven Neuroscience Techniques to Career Improvement Humans are not evolving as quickly as the pace of change, yet that pace is accelerating, leaving many of us struggling to meet expectations. To perform

at peak in the midst of this storm, we literally have to use our brains because the answer is rooted in neuroscience. You’re familiar with IQ and EQ. What about Neurological Intelligence? Hundreds of chemicals racing through our bloodstreams dictate how we think, feel, speak and behave. Yet, most of us operate largely at the mercy of those chemicals without realizing that we can strategically influence them. There are many Neurological Intelligence techniques – here are a few that will help you manage your chemical balance and enhance your career performance: Building Confidence: Perfect your posture and use breathing to stay calm and responsive to business situations Generating Innovative and Creative Solutions: To reduce cortisol and boost oxytocin, dopamine, and serotonin: Stretch to release ‘hot spots’ where you hold tension. Shake out your arms and legs and twist at the waist two times a day. You can also spark some much-needed creativity by taking a walk or looking at beautiful objects in art and nature. Building Resilience Through Rest: Maintain optimal cortisol levels by blocking out time in your schedule each week for REST (Retreat, Eat [healthy], Sleep and Treat). Write the word ‘REST’ in blocks in your calendar; and guard those windows. Neuro Hack #6: The Meaning of Life

The lack of meaning is the chief source of stress and anxiety. By finding a meaning in life you can solve your problems. The great scientist Viktor Frankl survived the horrors of Auschwitz and Dachau, losing most of his family in the process, by finding a simple meaning in his life. When you are feeling down this one single thought is enough to keep you going – Life is the meaning that you give it. For Frankyl he found that his purpose in this world was simply to help others find their own purpose in life. There were three very specific points to it, however: Work day by day with motivation Live from a perspective of love Have courage at all times in adversity We’ve all seen before: people who handle very tough circumstances with positivity and motivation. How do they do that? We all share the same biological structures, but what sets us apart from these people is their determination. Being determined to achieve something, overcome all obstacles and fight for what we want, however small, will help us clarify our purpose in each stage of our life. “Everything can be taken from a man but one thing: the last of human freedoms – to choose one’s attitude in any given set of circumstances, to choose one’s own way.” -Viktor FranklNeuro Hack #7: The 80/20 Principle 80% of your effects or results will come from 20% of your efforts. This is not

a principle it is a scientific fact whether you believe in it or not. At an intellectual level a ratio of 50/50 sounds like good sense in relation to a good return for a good effort. This way of being has driven society for generations. A clear work-reward equation creates a stable society where mediocrity is accepted and conformity rewarded. However, times have changed and to succeed in the new world mere competence is not enough. You need to choose a passion, something that comes easily to you so that you have sufficient advantage to rise to the top. Those who learn to apply the 80/20 logic will be the winners. Identify what you are good at and do more of it, success will come. Neuro Hack #8: Practice Positive Thoughts Positive thinking can influence our lives. The book The Secret took this ageold concept and brought it into the mainstream. There has been much discussion in the past two decades about the impact positive thoughts can have, not only on your future and the things you attract into your life, but also your personal well-being. However, what people tend to forget is that positive thinking isn’t something that “just happens.” You have to actively practice positive thinking on a daily basis and find ways to nurture optimism in your life. Try using the affirmations hacks to practice your positive thinking. Neuro Hack #9: Exercise On A Regular Basis An endorphin rush can do wonders for your brain, especially when it comes to solving problems or coming up with new ideas. Some of the world’s

greatest mental athletes - like chess legend Bobby Fischer - swear by physical exercise. Fischer used to play rounds of tennis between chess matches, and he took long walks to reflect on game play. He insisted that exercise made it easier for him to take a step back from the game of chess and keep his thoughts moving in a positive direction. If you’re not already get some exercise into your schedule – even if it’s just a walk in the park! Neuro Hack #10: Get Plenty of Sleep Richard Branson was one of the movers and shakers in the global conversation around sleep and its impact on business. While many entrepreneurs and business owners swear by (and often take pride in) their sleepless schedules, Branson insists that sleep is imperative for high brain functioning. The ideal amount is between 6½ and 8 hours of sleep per night, based on what works best for the person. Anything less than 6½ hours and you’re depriving your body of its most needed resource. Neuro Hack #11: Neuro Hacks & Affirmations – Coue’s Laws of Suggestion Affirmations are suggestions and thoughts that you give to yourself and can be either positive or negative. As you give yourself these suggestions, you are feeding them into your unconscious mind, which is where all of your real change takes place. It is also the place where your values and beliefs help to

form who you are and how you have got out of life what you have – today! Affirmations form part of 2 laws that were formulated between 1910 and 1920 by Coue and his followers in the New Nancy School. 1. The law of concentrated attention. When attention is focused upon a single idea, an affirmation for example, it tends to amplify the effect it has upon the mind and body. It has been scientifically proven that in most cases passive concentration of the mind or imaginal absorption, tends to magnify the effect of self-suggestion. 2. The law of auxiliary effect. Coue and his school observed that when strong emotion accompanied a suggestion it potentially worked as a powerful supporting factor in its realisation. For this reason, I recommend creative affirmations that you can readily attach an emotion to realise your objectives. By continuously feeding positive suggestions into your unconscious mind, this will ultimately build a positive or optimistic mental attitude, and when you constantly feed your unconscious with good, and happy ideas, your mind begins to accept these suggestions as reality because your unconscious is unable to differentiate between your imagination and your reality. When you consistently inject positive ideas into your unconscious, it will start to trust them as being the reality, and it starts to work producing similar thought patterns. When your thoughts become positive, you start to become more optimistic

about your life and the world around you. Your thoughts, after all, construct you. By thinking positively, you can empower yourself and build a healthy mindset and a healthy frame of mind that is always thinking of growth, development, and new ideas. A positive mindset will give you the strength and courage to believe in yourself and follow your dreams. Additionally, positive thought attracts positive opportunities. When you create a positive thought in your mind, it moves out and starts drawing towards you helpful and constructive opportunities that can help you fulfil your objectives. Affirmations help to build a positive and feel-good frame of mind. When you have an optimistic mindset, you tend to think positively a majority of the time, and your positive mindset can easily be used to battle negative thoughts that might try to infiltrate your mind. This helps to build self-belief, which in turn shapes your self-confidence instilling the ‘I can' mindset. When you start taking action, you eventually take charge of your goals and become successful in life. The effective use of affirmations to achieve success in every pillar of your life largely depends on some prerequisites. We have learned that electro chemical connections are how the brain communicates with your body. The chemical connections are created for each of the experiences in your life. When you repeat actions frequently, it helps to strengthen these neural connections. It is a constant reorganization process in your brain every time you take action. Your actions don't just have to be physical but can also be mental and include your thoughts as well as your words. The more that you think, do or speak something the stronger these neural pathways become.

The challenge we face is that the majority of your more than 60,000 thoughts that cross your mind daily are negative, because of our biological and survival instincts to hold on to beliefs, habits, and experiences that were bad. However, when you choose to think positively, you can alter your unconscious mind to break this tendency to fill your head with negative thoughts and start focusing more on the positive things in your life. Most of the power of thought and emotion already exists within you. This means that you already know how to feel happy, grateful, loved, etc. However, the issue often lies in the thoughts you continue to strengthen as you follow a negative narrative. You tell yourself that you are bad, unloved, sad, but want to be happy, loved, and good. To make affirmations work for you, it is important that you make a concerted effort to change your self-talk so that you can reinforce the feelings and emotions that you have inside that you want to bring to the forefront of your life. This means that saying the affirmations in the present tense, "I am," instead of "I want to be," or "I wish I were." When you change your thoughts to the present tense, it creates control over the pathways in your mind. It also opens doors for you to accomplish amazing things. Scientific studies have proven time and again that adopting positive affirmations in your life can create powerful changes to your psyche. The daily practice of positive affirmations has been linked to better academic performance, better athletic performance, lower stress levels, better performance when tackling challenging tasks, and making healthier life choices. No matter how or why you are looking to practice positive affirmations, there is evidence out there that it works well. But, how can you

make the practice of daily affirmations work for you? The practice of incorporating positive suggestions, through affirmations, into your daily life is a personal process and is something that you need to develop if you want them to work for your life. This means that you can choose a positive affirmation that fits in your life, but you also can tweak it and change it so that it works better for your situation. If this is a challenge for you, you can try the following steps. 1. Follow the goals and journaling work in Chapter 5. Design some compelling goals for yourself and link your suggestions to these goals Also keep your journal with you at all times and write down your thoughts and feelings. The action of writing helps you to integrate the thoughts more fully into your unconscious, much faster than if you were to type them out. Writing them down also makes them more intentional. 2. Take notes of all thoughts and emotions including negative ones and explore why you think this might be happening. You can learn more about this in Chapter 6 Anchors and Triggers. Every time you notice that you are thinking of something negative about yourself or your life, write it down in your journal. Also, next to the negative thought, rewrite it into something positive that negates the negative message. Make sure that you write it in the present tense and include the statement, “I am.” 3. Repeat this new thought several times for as long as you want to repeat it. This process is meant to help you identify the negative commentary

in your mind and also shed light on the times when these negative thoughts appear. If you have the time to record the day and time and a little bit about the situation that is leading to negative thoughts, you can begin to identify patterns in your thoughts and actions. These "triggers" can end up leading to negative outcomes, or you can rewrite the connection to something that leads to a positive result. When you rewrite your thoughts into positive suggestions, you want to be sure to make it something that you will actually remember. It should directly address the problem but be short and simple. Creative visualization can give you better results by developing a more loving and positive image of yourself. When you incorporate creative visualization into your affirmation practice, you need to take steps to relax and get into a peaceful, meditative state of mind. Practice will make your affirmations better. You don't need to strive for perfection, but rather you want to aim for a positive experience. If you wish to change your mindset and your current situation in life and start to live the life that you desire, positive affirmations can be an incredibly powerful tool to help you get there. Neuro Hack #12: Neuro Hack Affirmations Following on from above here are some affirmations for maintaining and improving your life, rewrite them as you see fit: 1. I am happy and always have control over my thoughts. 2. I choose to be full of joy. 3. I have all the powers within me that I need to succeed.

4. My reason for eating healthy food is to fuel my body. 5. Being healthy is better than any other taste in the world. 6. My healthy body is created by my healthy thoughts. 7. I love myself. 8. I am worthy. 9. My affirmations are helping me to become healthier and happier. 10. I choose to eat healthy because the food I eat is construction material for my body. 11. I eat nutritious foods that give me energy. 12. I eat and drink responsibly and stay within my own rules that I set in advance. 13. I get plenty of restful and energizing sleep. 14. I make healthy choices and respect the body that I have been given. 15. The water that I drink cleanses my body 16. I love how it feels to be healthy. 17. I feel a deep sense of well-being. 18. I love myself unconditionally 19. I am a good person who deserves to be happy 20. I take pride in who I am 21. I am happy just being me 22. I am totally comfortable being myself 23. I have limitless confidence in my abilities 24. I accept myself deeply and completely 25. I have accomplished great things 26. Others are inspired by my ability to be myself 27. I have confidence in my ability to do whatever I set my mind to 28. I am becoming more and more motivated every single day 29. I will find the motivation when I need it

30. I am finding myself more motivated every day 31. I am turning into someone who is naturally motivated 32. I am getting more and more driven and ambitious 33. Every day I become more driven, motivated and ambitious 34. I will be hugely motivated and productive 35. I will become someone who is always motivated and switched on 36. I will become a naturally motivated, highly ambitious person 37. I am becoming more and more motivated in all areas of my life 38. Every day I am becoming better and better 39. I love myself more every day. Neuro Hack #13: Happiness Happiness is not event dependent and through mental practice you can develop the necessary neural links in your brain to be happy all of the time. The Dalai Lama preaches that happiness is not a luxury but the purpose of our existence and that there is a definitive path leading towards it. To find happiness we must firstly identify the factors that are leading to both our happiness and our unhappiness. We then begin to eliminate the suffering causing factors and cultivate the happiness ones. The interesting issue here is that the achievement of happiness is purely a scientific process in rewiring our neurology supported by strong discipline. Buddhism teaches that there are 4 factors involved in obtaining pure happiness: Wealth Worldly Satisfaction Spirituality

Enlightenment The gateway to all of these things is your state of mind. This creates the experiences in your life and is also the filter through which you can view them. Moreover, the real source of happiness is control of your consciousness and you should always look for what you have in common with others to make sure that you are never lonely. Neuro Hack #14: Dream Incubator Dream incubation is the process of allowing our minds to think over a problem whilst doing something else. Einstein said that as well as staring into space his best ideas came to him in the shower. The learning state exercise on Page 41 is a great way to get into the dream incubation space when nearly 100% of your focus is on the outside. By framing the problem up front perhaps as a daily affirmation you should then go about your day in the normal way. It is my belief that this activates parts of your brain to come up with a solution to your problem. I sometimes find that if you ask yourself a question before you go to sleep you will awake with a solution formed by your unconscious self-whilst you slept. The best results from your dream incubator follow these rules: Give yourself time for the incubation to take place and mull around the problem before you want your answer. This stops you from jumping to the first thought that comes into your head. Be picky and don’t get frustrated that the solution doesn’t come

immediately. You need to give yourself time to switch off and let your unconscious mind the time to take over. Believe in your unconscious ability to provide an amazing solution. You will be surprised how effective the results can be. I have been using this methodology for decades and whilst it takes a while to get into the groove the results, I have generated have been mind blowing. Neuro Hack #15: Hawai’ian Prayer Every word is a prayer. Every thought you hold in your mind casts a spell. Every action is a magical act. Every identification is a false identification. What you hold in your mind creates a result, so everything you think, everything you say, and everything you do has consequences. Ika olelo no ke ola, I ka olelo no ka make. In the word, there is life; in the word there is choice - You must choose. So take care in what you ask for. Take care, for there are consequence for what you receive. Situations, which are not win-win often require a payback. Every successful thought you project may have the potential to reduce your freedom and increase your bondage because of your attachment to the result through your thought. Neuro Hack #16: Your Place In The Universe I use this meditation when I need a different perspective. It releases your way of thinking into another dimension. Try recording the following script (in italics) and playing it back to yourself when needed. As with any meditation please don’t drive or operate any machinery when doing this.

Firstly, relax and make yourself comfortable. Close your eyes and become aware of your breathing and notice the rhythm and pattern of your breath. Dwell for a while, just be contented to contemplate your breathing more deeply. Now, begin by paying attention to the whole of your body as one. From the crown of your head all the way down into your hands and feet. Be aware of your body as one every nerve every muscle every fibre. Don’t try to change anything. Don’t try to stop anything from changing. Some things can change just by being observed. Just be content to notice whatever you notice and feel whatever you feel. Be a passive detached observer. As you continue to relax turn your attention to within and become more aware of your body until you can almost imagine how you look right now. Begin to picture yourself as if seen from the outside. Now just imagine that you are taking a step back and looking at yourself. It really doesn’t matter how vividly you can picture yourself, it’s just the intention, the idea that matters. Imagine your body posture, your facial expression, the colour and style of your clothing. Now keep looking at the image of yourself resting there and imagine your own feet are gently leaving the ground. You begin to lightly float upwards slowly and consciously float upwards. All the while your gaze keeps returning to your own body, now seated below you as you rise above it. Keep looking downwards at your body as you float higher and higher. The ceiling and roof disappear, allowing you to float freely upwards. Gazing down you see yourself seated comfortably below, looking contented and contemplative. You see all the rooms and the people around. As you continue to float gently higher and higher, your perspective widens

more and more until you see the whole surrounding area. You see all the buildings nearby from above. You see people in the buildings and in the streets and roads. You observe people far below working, or walking, people cycling or driving their cars, and those travelling on buses and trains. You begin to contemplate the whole network of human lives and how people everywhere are interacting with each other, influencing each other being influenced and encountering each other in different ways. Floating higher, people become as small as ants below. Rising up into the clouds you see the whole of the surrounding region beneath you. You see both towns and countryside and gradually the coastline comes into view as your perspective becomes more and more expansive. You float gently up above the clouds, above the weather and through the upper atmosphere of the planet Earth, so high that you eventually rise beyond the sphere of the planet itself and into outer space. You look toward planet Earth and see it suspended in space before you, silently turning resplendent in all of its majesty and beauty. You see the whole of your home planet the blue of the great oceans and the brown and green of the continental land masses. You see the white of the polar ice caps, north and south. Though you can no longer see yourself from so far above you know and feel that you are down there on Earth below. You understand that your life is important and what you make of your life is important. Your change in perspective changes your view of things, your values and priorities. You contemplate all the countless living beings upon the Earth. The population of the planet of almost 8 billion. You realise that your life is one

among many, one person among the total population on Earth. You think of the rich diversity of human life on Earth. The many languages spoken by the people of different races, in different countries. People of all different ages, new-born’s, infants, elderly people, people in the prime of life. You think of the enormous variety of human experiences, some people right now are unhappy, some people are happy, and you realise how varied the tapestry of human life before you seems. As you gaze at the planet Earth you are also aware of its position within the rest of the universe, a tiny speck of stardust, adrift in the immeasurable vastness of space. A tiny rock in space, revolving around our Sun. The Sun itself just one of countless billions of stars which punctuate the velvet blackness of our galaxy. You think about the present moment on Earth and see it within the broader context of your life as a whole. You think about your lifespan as a whole, in its totality. You think of your own life as one moment in the enormous lifespan of humans. Hundreds of generations have lived and died before you and many more will live and die in the future long after you have gone. Civilization’s too have a lifespan; you think of the many great cities have arisen and destroyed throughout the ages and your own civilization as one in a series. Perhaps in the future to be followed by new cities, peoples, languages cultures and ways of life. You think of the lifespan of humanity itself. Just one of countless billions of species living upon the planet. Mankind arose as a race roughly 200,000 years ago and animal life first appeared on Earth over 4 billion years ago. Contemplate as time follows and realise that if the history of life on Earth

filled an encyclopedia a thousand pages long the life of the entire human race could be represented by a single sentence somewhere in that book, just one sentence. Contemplating the vast lifespan of the universe remember that the present moment is only the briefest of moments, the mere blink of an eye. Yet the here and now is important standing as the centre point of all human existence. Here and now you find yourself at the centre of living time. Though your body may be small in the grand scheme of things, your imagination, the human imagination, is as big as the universe enveloping everything that can be conceived. From the cosmic point of view your body seems small but your imagination seems utterly vast. You contemplate all things, past, present and future. You see your life within a bigger picture, the total context of cosmic time and space. The totality is absolute reality. You see yourself as an integral part of something so much bigger, something truly vast. Just as the cells and neural networks of your own body work together to form a greater unity, a living being, so your body as a whole is like a single cell in the organism of the universe. Along with every atom in the universe you necessarily contribute to your role to the unfolding of its grand design. As your consciousness expands and your mind stretches out to reach and touch the vastness of eternity things change greatly in perspective and shifts start to occur in their relative importance. Trivial things seem trivial to you. Indifferent things seem indifferent. The significance of your own attitude towards life becomes more apparent and you realise that the meaning of life is what you make of it. You learn to put things into perspective and focus on

your true values and priorities in life. One stage at a time you develop the serenity to accept the things you cannot change, the courage to change what you can change and the wisdom to know the difference. You follow as your own true nature as a rational, truth seeking human being and the one great nature of the universe as a whole. Now in a moment you are beginning to sink back to Earth, towards your place of here and now. Part of you can remain aware of the view from above and always return to and remember that sense of serenity and perspective. Now you begin your descent back down to Earth, to face the future with renewed strength and energy. You sink back down through the sky, down, down, down to the local area, into this building down, down, down and you sink gently back into your body, all the way now as your feet slowly come to rest upon the floor once again. Now think about the room around you. Think about action, movement, think about looking around and getting your orientation, raising your head a little. Begin to breathe a little more deeply and let your body feel more alive and ready for action. Dwell on your learning as you breathe vitality into your body and when you are ready open your eyes and emerge from this meditation revitalized and with a greater understanding of how you fit into the universe past and present. Neuro Hack #17: Reconstruct Your Memories When you remember an event, your brain reconstructs that event from pieces and parts, many of which are completely unrelated to the actual event in question. Because you are creating your memories as you're remembering

them, you are at every moment redefining your life story. You see once you realize that you're creating your memories, you can change them simply by deciding that they fit the life story you want for yourself. In practical terms, you can become the person you want to be by deciding to have that life story, and then intentionally going through your memories and examining them for details that support it. While those memories will have the same general structure, your brain will create the details to reinforce the life story you've intentionally selected. Your new memories will reinforce that life story and self-definition. Your brain will create details and events that make the memory coherent and congruent with who you believe yourself to be. Because your brain is creating the memory even as you remember it, you won't know what parts are "real" and which parts your brain has "fabricated." Your brain will transform your memories so that they power you forward. Neuro Hack #18: Managing Trust Companies are twisting themselves into knots to empower and challenge their employees. It’s clear that creating an employee-centric culture can be good for business. But how do you do that effectively? There are 4 management behaviours that foster trust. These behaviours are measurable and can be managed to improve performance. Recognize excellence; Neuroscience shows that recognition has the largest effect on trust when it occurs immediately after a goal has been met. Induce

challenge stress; When a manager assigns a team a difficult but achievable job, the moderate stress of the task releases neurochemicals, including oxytocin, that intensify focus and strengthen social connections. Intentionally build relationships; The brain network that oxytocin activates is evolutionary. This means that the trust and sociability that oxytocin enables are deeply embedded in our nature. Yet at work we often get the message that we should focus on completing tasks, not on making friends. Facilitate whole person growth; Acquiring new work skills isn’t enough. Investing in the whole person (Work & Home) has a powerful effect on engagement and retention. Neuro Hack #19: Neuroscience of Leadership Success depends on changing the behaviour of stakeholders to meet new challenges. But our brains are designed to register change as threat, and often cling to old habits and mind-sets. Recent breakthroughs in Organizational Neurology™ provide a fresh alternative to both behavioural and humanistic approaches to organizational change. Neuroscience principles are now transforming leadership in business enterprises and these concepts have relevance to any organisation or program. The implications of Organizational Neurology™ are particularly relevant for organizational leaders. It is now clear that human behaviour in the workplace doesn’t work the way many executives think it does. That in turn helps to explain why many leadership efforts and organizational change initiatives fail.

Moreover, it also explains the success in some organizations whose practices resonate with deeply with the predispositions of the human brain. Managers who understand these recent breakthroughs in Organizational Neurology™ can lead and influence organizational transformation that takes into account the physiological nature of the brain and the neurology that supports it. Neuro Hack #20: Neuroscience of Safety The brain of the average worker processes 20 times more information than 10 years ago; people can only properly concentrate for 20 mins at a time; 90 per cent of what is learned is lost in a week and 80-90 per cent of serious injuries and accidents are attributed to human error. An approach to cope with these challenges is neuroscience, helping your workforce improve their brain fitness through neuroplasticity. When people are neuro-agile, they have the flexibility to learn new skills, attitudes and behaviours (particularly in safety situations) fast and easily and unlearn old behaviour (unsafe) patterns quickly. Developing brain fitness in your people helps everyone to be safer, out-think, out-learn, out-create and out-perform. Neuroscience proves every person’s brain has unlimited learning potential and we can measure, track and unleash more of that potential. Performance improvement starts with understanding a person’s neurological design. Knowing the factors which impact this design is critical to ensuring the brain remains “in-flow” and agile.

Naturally strengthened neural networks through a robust Organizational Neurology™ designed approach helps people to optimize their ability to naturally drive safer and better performance in your business. Neuro Hack #21: Neuroscience of Effective Branding The primary function of our instincts is to ensure we survive. When presented with an image we will spend just a few seconds deciding if there is a “survive or thrive” consideration at stake. Our instincts are designed to act decisively: there is no point in contemplation if your head is about to be ripped off by a tiger! Likewise, our instincts will swiftly interrogate the brand environment and if the instinctive brain gets involved, the rest of the brain follows. If you want effective branding, this is crucial. Any visual representation of brand, from logo to employee behaviour, will automatically trigger an instinctive response. On the other hand, not everything is decided in seconds. We know it can take years to build loyalty through effective branding. This is where we need to understand the limbic system, the emotional region of the brain. This part of the brain was designed to let mammals cooperate on a more sophisticated level than reptilian predecessors. Emotionally, we look for connection with those around us. Our goal is to build brand trust but this takes time, especially under the eye of our protective instincts. Nevertheless, just as in any relationship, if our experience of a brand over time is reinforcing, we will learn to trust it and to build loyalty. It is a strange yet understandable, irony that we invest so much rationale in the development of brand strategies; yet success will be determined entirely by our instincts and our emotions.

Neuro Hack #22: The Key To Success In The Boardroom Until the last decade, it was assumed that our brains were fixed; that was until scientists accepted that our brains can and do change and named it “neuroplasticity”. Using a technology called neurofeedback we can give the brain information to stimulate learning at a deep level. Outside clinical applications, neurofeedback brain training has tended to be the “magic” used by business leaders and elite athletes for peak performance. Neurofeedback comes from the concept of operant conditioning – by giving feedback on behaviour, behaviour can be changed. Peak performance boardroom brain training requires a bespoke approach, tailored to the individual as much as an expensive suit. With the latest equipment, tests and coaching techniques to elicit certain brain challenges, it is possible to capture how an individual executive brain responds under various scenarios. And the results of this analysis can be used to develop made-to-measure neurofeedback protocols to maximize performance. The benefits of mindfulness are now well known, and mindfulness training is not uncommon in the boardroom. But many executives struggle to quieten their thoughts. Peak brain performance is about getting the brain to work smarter, not harder, and neurofeedback brain training teaches the brain how to better control itself. Neuro Hack #23: High Performance Can be Toxic High performance and low trust can be toxic for an organization. A better

person than a high performer with low trust is a medium performance person and high trust. Sometimes even a low performer with high trust is preferable. Yet organizations have lopsided metrics in that they have a myriad of ways to measure performance but next to nothing to measure trust. In essence, organizations promote toxicity in their business! Who do you trust within your organization? Just look for the natural leader who creates an environment for everybody else to succeed whilst they themselves might not be the top performer – are you such a person? It is the identification of these node points within organizations and teams that makes Organizational Neurology™ such an effective methodology in promoting success. Neuro Hack #24: Stoa Poikile ("painted colonnade") The Stoa Poikile is an ancient Greek and Roman school at which they taught techniques for memorizing difficult things, like lists of names, by mapping them onto memorable imagery. The technique involves remembering something visually compelling about a subject for example that she wore a blue dress. The Stoa Poikile technique takes advantage of our innate type of memory for remembering pictures rather than numbers that we are so good at and uses it to form associations. This process takes place within the hippocampus in the brain and it can be trained to both provide a better memory but also to release a positive chemical into the cortex as a reward mechanism. It’s a bit like winning at a game. Neuro Hack #25: Breakthrough Your brain is the organ that evolved to make sense to others of the way you make sense of yourself.

To break through any personal or professional obstacle you need to be aware that everything you do, think or feel at any moment of the day or night has a complex neurochemistry attached to it. That neurochemistry is created by your experience, determines your behaviour, and constructs the essence of the person you are. If you want something you don’t yet have - change your neurology QED! Neuro Hack #26: Find time to detach from work Professional life is very intense, and I find spending time with my children is the best way to detach from my work. For me, detaching is important for mental health but also for intellectual development, so that you can take distance from things and come back to them again with fresh perspective. Try to take out some time in your day for yourself. You will, over time, greatly benefit from this. Neuro Hack #27: Avoid Processed Sugar and Artificial Sweeteners Sugar is the culprit behind those mornings that start out productive but somehow end with a nap. Sugar gives you a burst of energy that quickly fades and leaves you feeling exhausted. Since most people have diets high in sugar, this explains the constant need for more coffee. However, it’s also been found that artificial sweeteners like aspartame can actually inhibit your brain’s ability to function normally and can eventually lead to neurodegeneration. Neuro Hack #28: Begin & End Each Day By Reading Your “Chief Aim”

Aloud In his best-selling book Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill says that in order to attract what you want in life, you have to embed it deeply in your unconscious. He instructs readers to get clear on their “chief aim,” which is where they want to go in life or what it is they want to achieve, and encourages them to write that chief aim down. Each morning and each night they should read their chief aim aloud, embedding it firmly in their vision. Over time, Hill says, your unconscious will end up attracting opportunities for you to bring that chief aim to life. Neuro Hack #29: Flexibility of Thought Always remember that learning to hack your neurology is the most effective way to enhance your Flexibility of Thought – Keep going and keep learning.

Neuro Hack #30: The Game of Life and How To Play It By thinking of life as a game we can maintain motivation to learn and apply the rules for our own happiness. Some people see life as a struggle and a battle against the odds. Most successful people, however, see life as a game. They worry less about the outcomes and focus on the rules and laws that can lead to success. This is the path of least resistance and gives more time for world wonder. Moreover, for thousands of years mystics and holy people have documented a series of unchanging principles that govern success in life.

The great philosopher Plato talked of snapshots of your own divine design which he called an individual’s perfect pattern. Don’t be like most people and go after things that really have nothing to do with the real you and would only make you unhappy. Ask your unconscious for a sign or message to tell you what your divine design is a sign will be revealed. Neuro Hack #31: Acting It can be tempting to wait until you feel different to make a change. But waiting until you feel good about yourself before applying for a promotion or waiting until you feel happy to invite your friends out for a night on the town could backfire. Research studies show you should behave like the person you want to become. When you change your behavior, your thoughts and your emotions will follow. Accordingly, this is a great way to hack your neurology. In a great Charlie Brown cartoon, he is stood with his shoulders hunched and looking at the floor. Doing so kept him in a depressive state. When he put his shoulders back and smiled, however, he got an instant boost in his mood. Importantly don’t expect feelings of confidence to come out of nowhere. You should ask yourself; how can you act confident? even when you’re filled with self-doubt. Acting like a confident person helps you feel surer of yourself. And research shows acting confident even increases other people’s confidence in you. Using your imagination try asking yourself what would a mentally strong person do perhaps a favourite character from a book or movie? Then, act as if you feel strong already. I guarantee that you’ll grow a little stronger.

Neuro Hack #32: Understand Your Fears To Reach Your Objectives As we have already discussed our thinking really can impact the way we act, and it can hold us back. Conversely, we can choose to acknowledge our fears and then carry on regardless. By finding a way to accept these fears and take them with us, with a different frame of mind we can drastically reduce their impact on our lives. This is not as easy as it sounds and as we will see in a future chapter the Amygdala Hijack is no small thing and sometimes fear can feel utterly paralyzing, so much so that we feel we can have no control over the situation. However, in nearly every situation you can have the opportunity to control just a little bit of the predicament we find ourselves in, however small. And at the very least we can choose to take control over whether we are overcome by fear or not. We might even use procrastination to mask that fear. But once we acknowledge that procrastination is the result of our brains requiring new information in order to proceed, we are in an ideal position to master our fears. Encouraging our brains to think in a calm way, rather than in emergency “fight or flight’ mode, reduces the way fear controls our decisions. Fear is a natural response and we should think of it as a special in-built warning system rather than being fearful of fear itself. Fear is simply the result of our brains processing their very natural assessment and reaching a fight or flight conclusion. Fear is a natural response because it warns you that your brain is at the boundary of what you think you’re capable of. This could include the fear of going it alone, starting your own business or even starting

a new relationship. Understanding what triggers your fears and how you react to them helps you stay more focused on your end goal when you do become fearful. Knowing and accepting what makes you frightened, and how you are likely to respond to being scared, means you can incorporate these fears in your journey. Whilst our fears may seem at times like unwelcome, uncomfortable and uninvited guests, if we can learn to consider them from a different perspective perhaps in a more familiar rather than being so frightened of them that we run away from our objectives. Chapter 6 on Anchors and Triggers will help you to reinforce this way of thinking and mitigate the impacts of fear. Neuro Hack #33: Get Into The Zone The “zone” is sometimes considered the domain of elite athletes, musicians, and actors, but the truth is, we all have the potential to experience it and when we do, it can enrich our lives. While individual experiences of being in the zone or flow state can vary, they tend to be characterized by an intense, undivided focus on the activity at hand. Actions become effortless, senses are heightened and feedback about how you are doing is available immediately. Many people find a sense of personal control and a feeling that they have the potential to succeed. Often time becomes distorted - slowing down in the moment and yet flying by in retrospect. According to the psychologist Mihály Csíkszentmihályi, we are often at our happiest when in the zone in part because when we are so absorbed in a single task, we don’t have enough attention left over to get lost in the inane chatter of our monkey mind, worry about things beyond our control, or stress

about our endless to-do-list. I have found that there are several stages of recognizing when you are in the zone and many times it is to do with both passion and competence. For example, when you start to learn to drive for the first time you are in a state of conscious incompetence. As you improve you move into an area of conscious competence where you know what you are doing but you are still having to concentrate on what you are doing. As you master driving you move into the zone of unconscious competence where everything just happens without conscious thought. To spread your zone skills into other areas of your life you must first understand how to create the conditions for flow to emerge. Try these zone steps: Choose an activity you are passionate about and decide on a goal related to it that will keep you motivated by. In choosing your activity and goal, look for the sweet spot between the challenge level of the task and your skill level. The zone or flow emerges at the boundary between boredom and anxiety when the perceived challenges are just balanced with your confidence and skill level. By creating the right conditions, flow can also be experienced in simple, day-to-day tasks like cleaning or gardening. There are no boring moments, only states of boredom. Consider what you can use as immediate feedback. (For example, a pulled shot at golf). Use this feedback as information to help you negotiate changing demands or make necessary adjustments to

maintain in your zone. Up front before entering the zone it will help to take three deep, grounding breaths and focus your attention in the present moment. The past and the future do not exist - just this moment. Go about your activity with a determined focus on the process. Trust your skills and your ability to adapt. It’s important to understand that it’s natural for the mind to wander. When this happens, notice it and bring it back to the activity without judgment. Getting into the zone will become easier and the practice of mindfulness will assist you to move into a creative space that few people are able to experience. Neuro Hack #34 Dream Catcher Visualized day dreaming can enable you to release a boost of positive chemicals at any time of the day. This will leave you feeling refreshed and positive. This hack should take no longer that 5 minutes and can be carried out in the office, the park or in your car. When you are in a comfortable position breathe in deeply through your nose filling both the top and bottom of your lungs. Focus on the rhythm of your breathing and nothing else. Let your thoughts just drift away and do not judge any. Picture a special place that brings back nice memories for you. It could be a

beach, a mountain trail or just sat in a favourite chair relaxing. Imagine yourself arriving at this special place and use all of your senses to provide as much detail as possible – sights, smells, sounds, taste and touch. Spend a few moments enjoying the tranquility and feel your energy banks getting recharged. You might feel your skin tingle as this happens. Now imagine there is someone with you. This is your spiritual guide who has come to help you with any problems you may have. You talk for what seems an age but in fact it’s only a few minutes. As your guide leaves you start to hear the sounds and smells around you and you find yourself fully refreshed and invigorated back where you started. Neuro Hack #35: Do It Right You must be the change you want to see in the world. To do this you must always do the right thing and do it in the right way. This starts with some choices you have to make. You must choose what you read so that you can develop wisdom and just as importantly choose who you will spend time with. You are a reflection of the company you keep and if you are not soaring with eagles you need to understand where this will take you. Take this onboard when you are writing down your goals. How you think determines how you act and how you act determines what you can get out of life. Do not be afraid to make decisions and remember very minute of every day you have the opportunity to change your life. It is never too late. Once you have decided the clarity of your decision is directly related to the

effectiveness of your actions, move forward with vigour and do not doubt that you will succeed. All the time you are doing this you will be rewiring your neurology. Neuro Hack #36: Turbocharged Habits The greatest discovery of the past 40 years is that a person can change their life by altering their attitudes. Habits of thinking need not be forever. One of the most significant findings in neurology is that individuals can choose the way they think. Furthermore, it is clear that we don’t attract what we want, but what we are. Only by changing your thoughts will you change your life. What we continually think becomes our habits and this in turn sets up the chemical balance in our brains. Moreover, achievement happens because you as a person embody the external achievement; you don’t get success but become it. There is no gap between mind and matter. Those thoughts that receive your attention, good or bad, go into the unconscious to become the fuel, through habits, for later events in the real world – you are what you think you are all day long! Understanding how this works, how thoughts work, can establish that necessary turbo charged habit for your success. Neuro Hack #37: Internal Energy In 1840 a French scientist called Chevreul surmised that all thoughts regrading movement must have an electrical charge attached to that movement. Even though that electrical charge would be very small. Specifically, he said that if you think about moving your finger that would require an electrical charge for that movement to take place. Furthermore, he

also suggested that even if you think about moving that finger but don’t move it there would still be an electrical charge available for that movement to take place. This was one of the very first suggestions of an internal energy force within the body. Chevreul used a piece of lead attached onto a thin thread to prove his point. By using this internal energy, he was able to make the lead weight move without moving his fingers or hand. Nearly 100 years later an American scientist called Eysenck carried out some experiments using the latest electrical detecting equipment and he proved that Chevreul’s suggestions were correct. Over the past 30 years I have researched this extensively and in doing so discovered that we can indeed generate our own internal energy which can be used for varying purposes including improving and strengthening our neural networks. The hack is not difficult to master and is sometimes easier following a meditation or mindfulness session when your mind is likely to be in a flow or zone state. To start with place your elbows on a table or chair and hold your hands upwards. As the blood start to flow out of your hands they will begin to tingle. This provides a focus of attention for the mind supported by a physical reaction and your unconscious believes that something strange is going on! At this point you can relax your arms but still notice that the tingling

continues. Maintain the tingling thought and imaging the pins and needles type tingle move into your forearms. Frequently you will now notice that the soles of your feet are also starting to tingle, and the sensation will start to become stronger and the palms of your hand may feel warm. You are now hacking your neurology and your mind isn’t completely certain what is going on or how you are doing what you’re doing. This is a good thing because as your prefrontal cortex and conscious mind are busy trying to work out what’s going on you now have some internal energy at your disposal. I have frequently used my internal energy to selfheal myself and others and this stuff really works. Students and patients in my clinic have told me about spiritual activities, auroras and other such occurrences. I would be interested to learn how you use yours. We will return to Chevreul in more detail to reinforce this important hack in Chapter 7 Neuroscience and Hypnosis.

Chapter 5 Goal Setting & Journal When you keep getting the same results by doing things the same way it's time to stop, consider your purpose in life and dwell a while in possibility. You could be anything that you want to be. The only thing that’s necessary to make this work for you right now is to begin to believe that it is possible to change. The past doesn’t matter. Whatever hasn’t worked in the past has nothing to do with what you will do today. What you do right now is what will shape your destiny. You see, successful performance in life and any working and sporting environment is limited by a lack of focus, mood control, stress reduction, distraction management and lack of confidence. Whereas, your innate natural ability combined with excellence in commitment, belief, full focus, positive images, mental readiness, distraction control and constructive evaluation are the key success factors that differentiate winning from failure. The hardest step in achieving anything is making a true commitment and when you do commit it is critical to take immediate action towards your new direction. This is what outcome focused goals is all about. This is a profound skill to develop but many people don’t give it enough time to start impacting on what they can achieve, and they quickly give up and rejoin the downward spiral. What it is important to understand is that the action patterns that we demonstrate throughout the day are results of habits, not of

permanent characteristics. All we have to do to build a new habit is to create a routine. If something isn’t happening in your life, it’s about your lack of a routine. I guarantee that if you practice, within a short time your new routine will become effortless and natural. By deciding what we want and setting outcomes, we become aware of the difference between what we have currently and what we want instead. By filtering your thinking toward what we want to achieve, we pay better attention to the opportunities which will assist us in achieving our destiny. In essence, robust outcome focused goals supported by a daily journal will let you know how to produce the change you want. Life is what you make of it and you can move your life in any direction you choose as long as you understand the following: To change your life, you must change Only you are responsible for making change happen Only you can know what direction you want to move in Your belief is that it can happen You have the models, techniques and tools (this book) to produce the change you want Without a decision to start and take action change will not happen Research has shown that when forming our outcomes, we need to consider the following steps: Outcomes should be formed in the positive. For example: “I want to be financially secure”. Rather than “I don’t want to be broke”. You see, your unconscious mind, where all changes to our neural links are made, doesn’t

understand negatives, and in the latter quote would actually focus on the word “broke” and deliver this back to you. It is very important that you understand the implications of stating outcomes in the positive! Other examples include: “I want to be confident” rather than “I don’t want to be anxious”. “I want more friends” rather than “I don’t want to be lonely”. Check ecology. It’s important to consider the consequences of your desired outcomes. Do you really want them at all costs? When you ask yourself “if you could be financially secure would you take it”, is there any hesitation in your response? If there is add provisos to your outcome and continue around the loop until you are happy with any consequences. For example, to your outcome, “I want to be financially secure” on checking your ecology you might add “I want to be financially secure, as long as my partner/family/friends are ok with this”. Be specific. Detail is important so imagine the situation and describe it in terms of who, where, when, what, how. For example: “The next time I meet somebody new whom I feel good about, I will ask them to dinner”. Rather than “I want a better social life”, which is a vague outcome. The more specific you can be the better. Evidence. What is the sensory based evidence that will let you know that you have got what you wanted? Imagine it as though you see, hear and feel right now. Take responsibility and action. You are responsible for making change

happen. If your goals are not working, they might be too large, too small or insufficiently motivating for you. If the goal is too large break it down into smaller chunks, if too small chunk up. Nothing will happen until you take positive action! Before moving on write down 3 outcome goals that you want to achieve in the next 12 months – remember state in the positive, be specific and identify the evidence. Goal 1: Goal 2: Goal 3: The Daily Journal Keeping a daily journal or diary is essential for reflection and learning to take place. In particular, I have found it helps us to process the events of the day and putting the day’s thoughts and issues out of our head and onto a sheet of paper has a way of alleviating any mental burden. More importantly, this activity also supports us to assign meaning to daily experiences and to assist with their interpretation. Accordingly, things become clearer if you can identify what’s important from the thoughts, fears, emotions and confusion that we are bombarded with on a daily basis. In turn, we can learn to better align our outcomes with what is really important to us. A part of this process is remaining self-aware. Many things that appear so obvious to other people are sometimes hidden to us. In

essence, we are blind by what we don’t know. From a personal development perspective, it’s important to acknowledge, or at least try to acknowledge, the “you” that others may see. The technique of mindfulness within this program will greatly assist in this process I have used many formats but the one below has been found to be particularly robust. There are 2 basic parts to this process: Setting Outcomes. Research clearly shows that writing down your outcomes consistently produces results. Regular Review. By considering what you would different in a myriad of interactions you will significantly improve your results. An important learning point is that once you have set your daily outcomes only do what you want to do! You do not need willpower, or effort, simply spend about 10 minutes each day on the process and notice what works and what doesn’t. If you don’t get immediate results change your daily outcomes until they do. What we are doing is programming your unconscious mind with clear and sustained messages about the results you want, then let it get on with it. I find the following quote useful in understanding this approach: “There is a thought in your mind right now. The longer you hold on to it, the more you dwell upon it, the more life you give to that thought. Give it enough life, move out of your comfort zone and it will become real. So make sure the thought is indeed a great one”.

Daily Journal of (Date)…………… Firstly, decide a format that best suits you. I find a hard-backed notebook best; however, others prefer loose notes, softback book or enter straight onto a computer. Experiment to find the best time of the day that suits your schedule and if you find it difficult just start with a single outcome and build up from there. The important issue is that you start and develop a routine. What’s happened in the past day, both positive and negative, (include overnight if anything happened) in short bullet points. X X X X Rate the day Red for not too good, Amber for average, Green for fantastic. Then answer the following questions: What were the highlights? What did you enjoy? What worked? What would you do differently? What would you like to change in the way you responded and behaved? What other learning took place? What personal development do you intend over the next 24 hours? What outcomes do you want to achieve in the next 24 hours? Perhaps

testing a new approach? X X X

Chapter 6 Anchors & Triggers Anchoring is a specialist neuro linguistic technique that enables a specific stimulus (the trigger) to be connected to an emotion, normally a memory, to recall a chosen positive state. This methodology can be best used under stress when we need control of under or over arousal of emotion. The process is based on the understanding that humans learn behaviour in response to a stimulus. We constantly move and change our state in response to our environment. The technique state of being unresourceful accessing, for main ways:

involves an individual anchoring a previously positive chosen and then “firing” a pre-set trigger to bring about changes to circumstances. Anchoring is a very useful technique for any reason, a specific state. I primarily use this model in 3

To assist with new training and learning in that the student is helped to remember a particular complex exercise or process. To assist professional sports people to recall a control state when in a state of over arousal (anger for example) To assist with triggering a more positive state in the case of proposed substance or physical abuse of themselves or others. Anchors and triggers can be set in a number of ways and it is suggested that you try out a number of these life changing tools. In particular, anchors can

be set naturally during an intensely happy moment, or perhaps during laughter. Or they can be set using a technique known as the circle of excellence. From a scientific perspective we are generating a state where the brain produces positive chemicals (dopamine, oxytocin and serotonin for example) as a result of neurotransmitters firing. We have already learned that these are positive chemicals that help us: Dopamine controls arousal in many parts of the brain and is vital for providing physical motivation. Serotonin has a particular effect on the management of mood and anxiety. High levels of serotonin correlate with feelings of serenity and optimism. Oxytocin evokes feelings of contentment and creates calmness and security. This chemical is critical in the formation of trust. Setting Anchors Anchors will increase in intensity the better practiced you become at eliciting the desired state to be anchored. In addition, you can “stack” multiple anchors onto the same trigger to give you unstoppable ignition! Setting an anchor is a 4-step process. Here is the theory: Either anchor a naturally occurring state (uncontrollable laughter for example) or elicit a state to be anchored. As the internal state is rising (see diagram below) you can set the anchor.

The anchor, normally touching (I use a thumbnail onto a finger, or twang an elastic band on my wrist) is removed before the intensity peaks (see diagram below) When you trigger or fire the same anchor you will re-access the anchored state. Anchoring Technique Step 1. Become clear about the state you want. Most people want to either become energized and positive. Be clear and specific in your own words to describe it. Step 2. Recall an event in the past when you have been in that state. Look for a comparable event in your past (you can even imagine an event if you want) when you felt in a particular way. Perhaps you might want to recall a calm meditative state which you can use to remove anger! Step 3. Relive that state as vividly as you can. Display the behaviour you want to anchor. Give someone a hug, run around and get excited etc.

Step 4. When the intensity of the state is rising set the anchor (As per the diagram above). I use a thumbnail onto my opposite forefinger it will leave a thumbnail mark. This important as this anchor will be triggered in the same way and must be readily reproduced. It is important to remove the anchor before the peak state begins to drop off. Step 5. When required fire the anchor to recall the event. When you need to get back into the positive state, you simply fire the anchor yourself as a stimulus to change your state. You fire or trigger the anchor by using the same method you used in Step 4. By clearing your state after setting the anchor – think about the smell of

freshly made coffee or bread. You can test your state by firing the anchor. It sometimes takes several anchoring attempts to fire a really strong anchor. A useful advantage of this technique is that you can anchor, and then fire off, multiple anchors stacked onto each other – expect to get a huge positive boost accompanied by the increase in oxytocin, Serotonin and dopamine! Bringing About States There are many ways to elicit states. You can do it verbally by asking about a time in your past when the state was there, or you can fantasize one you saw in a movie. Nonverbally by adjusting your body to increase intensity a bit like a Tony Robbins exercise! You could also use smells or sounds that you can strongly associate with. Circle of Excellence This is an exercise that works great with kids as well as adults. Draw an imaginary circle on the floor, you can use a large hoop or rope if you want - about a metre diameter works. Project your super positive imagination and thoughts into that circle as if you were superman/girl firing your eye lasers into the circle and powering the circle up. Pretend you are a volcano pouring your energy into the circle. You can use anything positive as though you were powering up a spaceships engine for blast off. Really project all of your being and imagination into this circle for about 5 minutes, longer if desire but 5 minutes is normally sufficient. You can use anything that is positive. In a moment you are going to step into the circle and soak up all of that

positive energy into your body, mind and soul. First though I want you to open your receptors so that you can embrace this gift through all of your senses. Hear and see the energy sizzling and sparking, feel the heat or cold, taste and smell the energy ready for your use. When you are at a climax step or jump into the circle and anchor that amazing sensation, soak up all the feelings and feel your internal batteries charging to full and beyond. Pocket some energy for later, take all that you want! You are now powered for success. Use this magic wisely. Draw on the power by triggering the anchor you have made. These can be multiple anchors based on your senses each building upon the other. Anchoring Case Studies I have worked extensively with professional sports people specifically to help them develop anchors which they can use during a game. One such individual was a talented soccer player, only 17 years old and he was to become one of best players of all time. Unfortunately, this guy’s passion and lack of experience was causing him to commit fouls just at the wrong time for his team. On several occasions this led to his team losing! In addition to going through the mental strengthening detailed earlier in the book we also developed some anchors for him to use during the game when he felt the “red mist” rising as a result of over arousal (he was starting to lose control). We set the anchors for him to be in a state of total control using the Jedi Knight metaphor from Star Wars. This young person could certainly identify with this fantasy character!

We set the anchor of an elastic band on his wrist and the trigger was for him to fire (twang) the elastic band when he started to identify the first thoughts of anger rising which was a rise in heat on his face and increased self-talk. Triggering the anchor changed his state to a more effective condition.

Chapter 7 Neuroscience & Hypnosis Up until now we have been discussing and working with neuroscience from a Cognitive Behavioural (CB) context. Going forward we will now explore neuroscience within a hypnosis or Cognitive Behavioural Hypnotherapy (CBH) context. I have been working with both approaches for over 30 years and have found the CBH context is up to 90% more effective in achieving potential breakthrough. This is supported by many scientists including Yapko and Kirsch. In the most definitive study Kirsch (1982) pooled data from over 18 major controlled studies comparing the study of CBH with other models and concluded that any neuroscience-based CB work was more effective when integrated with hypnosis for 70% to 90% of people. In this part of the book we will consider how CBH can super-add to your goals and outcomes much more quickly than with Neuroscience CB. It is important therefore for you to better understand what hypnosis is, where it came from and how it can benefit you. We will then cover a number of CBH models which you can combine with the neuro hacks from Chapter 4 to rocket you to becoming unstoppable. In addition, because self-suggestion and affirmations are so important to any neuroscience-based change, I have introduced the ancient stoic way of being into the mix. You will see, particularly from the ancient stoic threefold way of life how this 2000-year-old belief system resonates with modern living and the search of achieving personal potential.

A History of Hypnosis, CBH & Stoicism Hypnosis traces its history back for thousands of years therefore learning the history of hypnosis is to understand the history of suggestion and trance and to understand our connection to the ancient secrets of the past. Indeed, the evolution of hypnosis is directly reflective of human development of consciousness. Thousands of years ago it was included in trance rituals found in the shamanistic religions of our ancestors around the world. Perhaps the earliest use goes all the way back to the caveman era. Later within the ancient Egyptian, Greek and Roman history there is evidence of sleep temples where chanting, incantations, suggestions and meditation were used to induce states whereby people were healed, and feats of great performance could be achieved. The early history developments were in the field of philosophy utilizing systematic meditation and visualization, before in the middle-ages monks carry on with these ancient meditative traditions. Until in the late 1770’s Franz Anton Mesmer introduces mesmerism through the healing powers of magnets. Later Mesmer develops a theory of an invisible healing energy within the body. Mesmer calls this energy "Animal Magnetism" or the "Magnetic Fluid." This was the beginning of a huge Europe-wide therapeutic movement called Mesmerism. Many others have contributed to the continued advancement of hypnosis and hypnotherapy as a proven robust and evidenced based therapy for the achievement of change.

What is Hypnosis and How Does it Work Hypnosis is a simple common-sense process that is easily mastered. It is essentially a state of increased suggestibility where, by relaxing, developing a positive view of life and visualizing what you want hypnosis can help you to, over time, improve your feelings, thoughts and behaviours. And as this takes place at the unconscious level it a piece of the jigsaw to change your deletion, distortion and generalization filters. The word “hypnosis” originates from the Greek word for “sleep” (hypnos), but it is actually an abbreviation for “neuro-hypnotism”, meaning “sleep of the nervous system.” In ancient times, when trancework was a traditional part of European culture, philosophers wrote ‘The sleep of the body is the awakening of the mind.’ In the Eighteenth-Century Anton Mesmer described hypnosis as “lucid sleep” or “artificial somnambulism” All of these points serve to emphasize that although hypnosis often resembles sleep externally, it is fundamentally different from normal sleep inside. Hypnotists will often use the word “SLEEP” as a trigger word to induce hypnosis. This is because of tradition, and because the (appropriate) use of that word has been found by psychologists to be capable of evoking the body’s innate relaxation response, not because hypnosis feels like being asleep. That said, when a person is in a very profound state of hypnotic relaxation, they will often reach a certain depth of drowsiness at which their mind begins to drift in and out of a sleep-like state. This is perfectly normal; someone can be in hypnosis and feel sleepy at the same time. Anyone can be hypnotised although the depth of hypnosis differs between

people. Entering into hypnosis is as easy as daydreaming, if you can daydream or relax your mind in any other normal way then you can enter into hypnosis. Hypnosis is essentially a matter of belief and imagination. In essence, if you believe, or just imagine, that you are in hypnosis then you are in hypnosis. Hence, one perfectly legitimate, and pretty common, method of learning hypnosis is to pretend or role-play your way into hypnosis. Also, if you imagine that hypnosis is really difficult and you will be no good at it then, of course, you will find it to be so. But if you imagine that it is easy and believe you are doing well then you will be right. As the great American industrialist Henry Ford famously said: “Whether you say you can or can’t, either way you’re right.” The poet Virgil wrote: “They can because they believe they can.” This is the essence of hypnotism. The practice of doing hypnosis is actually a lot older than academic research in the field of psychology. Hence, since the very early days of psychology, hypnosis has been subject to analysis and experiment. Thousands of books and articles have been published on the effects of hypnosis, containing reference to research projects and case studies, which confirm the characteristics of hypnosis and its therapeutic benefits. In particular, there is robust evidence from trials that both hypnosis relaxation is effective in treating anxiety, pain, phobias, Irritable bowel syndrome, sports performance, personal improvement, weight loss, smoking cessation, asthma and many other issues. In addition, salesman, trainers, and managers often use hypnosis increase their business success. Mystical, spiritual, and religious people of every creed and culture, from ancient times to the present day, have used the techniques of hypnosis alongside their traditional prayer and meditation. Artists and poets, such as Andre Breton and the early Surrealists, have used it for inspiration and self- exploration.

The writer Aldous Huxley developed his creative talent with hypnosis, as did the composer Rachmaninov who used hypnotherapy to help him write his Piano Concerto No. 2. Charles Dickens, Edgar Alien Poe, Henri Balzac and Alexander Dumas are just some of the famous authors known to have studied Mesmerism, the precursor of hypnotism. The poet Shelley dabbled in Mesmerism and wrote a short poem about it. The philosopher Wittgenstein was hypnotized twice to help improve his grasp of logic; he subsequently became one of the most influential academic philosophers of the Twentieth Century. Hypnosis has been used by countless thousands of people over the centuries to help them in dealing with the everyday problems of living, to overcome fears and inhibitions, to develop skills and to cultivate self- esteem and confidence. The value of this manual is that it breaks down the sometimescomplicated steps into simple easy to understand pieces for anyone to master. How Does it Work In the 19th Century James Braid and his colleague William Carpenter undertook several in-depth experiments to uncover what makes hypnosis work. In his early work Braid discovered that if he could assist the patient to concentrate on a single idea for a short period of time then a deep state of relaxation would ensue. Braid named this monoideism which he later termed the ideo-motor action. This theory is fundamental to a real understanding of hypnotherapy and in particular it proves the relationship between the mind and body interface. The best way to understand this theory from a practical perspective is to use

an experiment that I use in my classes and sometimes with personal clients. We touched on this earlier in the book. The experiment was first developed by a French chemist, Michel-Eugene Chevreul, in 1812. Chevreul discovered that he could move a small pendulum by what appeared to be thought alone! What Chevreul had discovered is that if you think about something, for example moving your arm, even if you do not move your arm your brain will trigger electrical signals through the muscular structure, that would normally move your arm, as if your arm was moving. Consequently, what Chevreul noticed was that even though he was not moving his arm and the hand that was holding the small pendulum, the pendulum would move to and fro, stop and move in a circular direction due to minute muscular movements, undetectable by Chevreul, as a result of electrical activity sent out from the brain when Chevreul thought about wanting the pendulum to move. During his experiment Chevreul wrote: “The more extraordinary those effects seemed to me, the more I felt the need to verify whether they were truly independent from any type of muscular movement in my arm, as had been asserted to me in the most positive manner. That prompted me to lean my right arm, which was holding the pendulum, on a wooden support that I was able to slide forward from my shoulder to my hand, and bring back from my hand to my shoulder: I soon noticed that, in the first case, the pendulum's movement decreased progressively as the support was coming closer to my hand, and that it ceased when the fingers that were holding the thread were themselves braced, whereas, in the second case the reverse effect took place; meanwhile, for the same distance from the support to the thread, the movement was slower than previously.

That caused me to think that quite probably a muscular movement that was taking place unbeknownst to me was determining the phenomenon, and I had to give even more consideration to this opinion, because I remembered, albeit vaguely, having been in quite a peculiar state, while my eyes were following the oscillations described by the pendulum I was holding in my hand. I performed the experiment once again, with my arm totally free, and I was convinced that the memory mentioned above was not a delusion, because I was feeling very clearly that at the same time as my eyes were following the oscillating pendulum, there was in myself a disposition or tendency toward movement, which, as involuntary as it seemed to me, was proportionately more satisfied as the pendulum went into larger arcs: thus I thought that if I were to repeat the experiment with a blindfold on, the results might be quite different from those I had observed. That is precisely what happened.” The pendulum may be made from a small ring or fishing lead suspended from a piece of cotton thread about 6 inches long. The drawing on the next page can be used as a template for better observing the movement of the pendulum. Try it for yourself using the template below!

Image by OpenClipart-Vectors from Pixabay

Years later scientists confirmed this event by the development of sensors that could measure the brain wave activity by confirming electrical activity in the muscular structure when a thought was being processed. Indeed, Eysenck in 1957 established that: “If electrodes and an amplifier are connected to the muscles of the arm, and the subject is told to lie quite still on a couch, but to imagine that he is lifting that arm, then a barrage of nervous impulses is recorded as passing through the nerves and into the muscles which would have been used had the movement, in fact, been executed. Thus, nerve transmission and mental

images or ideas are closely related, and indeed, it appears, that the one is never found without the other achieving changes in a person's behaviour through verbal means, as in hypnosis, appears possible.” Taking this idea further hypnotherapists were able to deduce and prove that if a suggestion is given to a person under hypnosis, that the person wishes to undertake, then the person will execute that suggestion first in the mind and then in reality. It was Clark Hull in 1933 who identified that: “A continuous stimulation by words associated with a particular act will bring about the act, whether these words are those of the subject himself or of some other person. Perhaps the most critical evidence of all indicating the reality of ideomotor action is the fact that when a subject merely observes an action, he tends automatically to execute it.” However, hypnotic suggestions are only effective insofar as the words are meaningful and evocative for the individual subject. Accordingly, suggestions must be chosen to trigger mental associations usually feelings or images which themselves evoke the desired changes. What is also true is that the unconscious mind accepts any idea suggested or imposed on it unless, there already exists contrary ideas sufficiently strong to counteract the new one; or the unconscious mind has acquired a certain mental habit of thought or belief, which is opposed to the introduction of the new idea; or the unconscious mind is directed by its owner not to receive or accept such suggestions or ideas. Taking this further, once suggestions have been accepted your unconscious mind will adopt the necessary actions to make the suggestion a reality.

Of major importance of course is the natural rapport that the hypnotherapist develops with their client. If the client is relaxed, understands what the process is and how they will feel they will enjoy the experience. This frame of mind is essential if the session is to work effectively. During the hypnotic process there are a number of observable phenomena by which you can check if the hypnosis is working and the client can be assured that what they are feeling is completely normal: The Muscle Tone changes - there is a relaxation and flattening out of the muscles especially on the face, neck, shoulders, hands. There is a dilation of pupils. The breathing slows and becomes regular and rhythmic. The heart Rate slows, check the pulse in the neck. The reflexes slow particularly blinking and swallowing. The eyes may become watery. The skin Colour changes particularly around the cheeks and neck. Internally you may notice: A light sometimes floating feeling in the head, neck or even the whole body. Tingling sensations in the extremities. Lightness or heaviness in the shoulders, arms, hands, legs. The eye lids feel different either wide open or very heavy. Going into and out of trance. Itchiness on the face.

What is Cognitive Behavioral Hypnotherapy (CBH) and How Does it Work Cognitive Behavioural Therapy (CBT) is a form of psychotherapy which combines cognitive and behavioural therapy. Cognitive therapy looks at how our thoughts can create our feelings and mood. Behavioural therapy pays close attention to the relationship between our problems, our behaviour and our thoughts. CBT may focus on what is going on in the present rather than the past, but often the therapy will also look at how thinking patterns may have begun in early childhood and the impact patterns of thinking may have on how we interpret the world as adults. An important advantage of CBT is that it tends to be short. CBT introduces people to a set of principles that they can apply whenever they need to, and which will stand them in good stead throughout their lives. In the 1960s, a US psychiatrist and psychotherapist called Aaron T. Beck observed that, during his analytical sessions, his patients tended to have an 'internal dialogue' going on in their minds, almost as if they were talking to themselves. But they would only report a fraction of this kind of thinking to him. For example, in a therapy session the client might be thinking to him- or herself: 'He (the therapist) hasn't said much today. I wonder if he's annoyed with me?' These thoughts might make the client feel slightly anxious or perhaps annoyed. He or she could then respond to this thought with a further thought: 'He's probably tired, or perhaps I haven't been talking about the most important things'. The second thought might change how the client was

feeling. Beck realized that the link between thoughts and feelings was very important. He invented the term 'automatic thoughts' to describe emotion-filled or 'hot' thoughts that might pop up in the mind. Beck found that people weren't always fully aware of such thoughts but could learn to identify and report them. If a person was feeling upset in some way, the thoughts were usually negative and neither realistic nor helpful. Beck found that identifying these thoughts was the key to the client understanding and overcoming his or her difficulties. Beck called it cognitive therapy because of the importance it places on thinking. It's now known as CBT because the therapy incorporated behavioural techniques as well. The balance between the cognitive and the behavioural elements varies among the different therapies of this type, but all come under the general term 'cognitive behaviour therapy'. CBT has since undergone scientific trials in many places by different teams and has been applied to a wide variety of problems. CBT is a proven model that aims to help you manage your problems by changing how you think and act. Significant evidence proves that what you think affects both your body (mind body link) and your external behaviour. In essence you are what you think. If you have not achieved your goals in life it is because you are not thinking in the right way at the right time. CBT encourages you to talk about: How you think about yourself, the world and other people

How what you do affects your thoughts and feelings By talking about these things, CBT can help you to change how you think (‘cognitive’) and what you do (‘behaviour’), which can help you feel better about life and more focused on what you want. CBT is particularly helpful in reaching your life goals in addition to tackling problems such as anxiety, depression, post-traumatic stress and drug misuse which may be getting in the way of your success. Unlike other talking treatments, such as psychotherapy, CBT focuses on the problems and difficulties you have now, rather than issues from your past. It looks for practical ways you can improve your state of mind on a daily basis. The focus of CBT work is the identification of negative thoughts or cognitions. A cognition is a belief which entails a truth value, for example a statement which can be either true or false. A negative cognition can be seen as a type of delusional belief or fixed idea, also known as negative autosuggestion or self- hypnosis. One of the main differences between hypnotherapy and cognitive therapy is the increased emphasis in the latter upon identifying and directly counteracting negative thoughts. Cognitive interventions attempt to rectify these negative cognitions and can therefore be divided into two broad categories, Uncovering techniques, aimed at the identification of negative cognitions. Cognitive restructuring, the disputation of negative thoughts and their

replacement with healthy ones. Even the uncovering techniques in cognitive therapy can potentially have an inherent therapeutic effect in that they heighten meaningful self-awareness and self-understanding. The process of posing and answering them also trains clients to adopt a more objective and focused attitude toward their own feelings and behaviour. This kind of psychological self- examination was central to classical Stoic therapy and helps to raise informed self-awareness, similar to the mindfulness exercises of Buddhist meditation. Often people will say that they know that these irrational fears are not true, but it is "as if" part of them is thinking that way. People exhibit nonconscious, implicit, judgements in their emotions and behaviour which are often in contradiction to their professed conscious beliefs. Indeed, for that very reason, people are often reluctant to admit their implicit beliefs and are not fully aware of them; they seem too absurd for some to readily accept responsibility and ownership for them. The main techniques of uncovering in cognitive therapy can be divided into three broad categories, Direct questioning. The therapist simply asks the client, e.g., what thoughts were going through their mind during a period of emotional distress. Self-monitoring. CBT makes extensive use of homework assignments that require clients to monitor and record their own thoughts, especially in relation to problem situations. Imagery. Visual imagery is used to help clients explore their thinking

patterns and identify key negative cognitions. Helpful and unhelpful reactions CBT helps you to realise that your problems are often created by you. It is not the situation itself that is making you unhappy, but how you think about it and react to it. The Royal College of Psychiatrists illustrates this using the following example: Situation: You have had a bad day, feel fed up, so go out shopping. As you walk down the road, someone you know walks by and apparently ignores you. Unhelpful thoughts such as ‘They ignored me - they don't like me’ result in you feeling low and rejected, and you get stomach cramps and feel sick. You decide to go home and avoid the person. Helpful thoughts such as ‘They look a bit wrapped up in themselves - I wonder if there's something wrong?’ mean you feel concern for the person, rather than negative feelings, and you get in touch to make sure they are ok. When CBT is combined with hypnotherapy to produce Cognitive Behavioural Hypnotherapy (CBH) it has been scientifically proven to be more than at least twice as effective at reaching desired outcomes. Indeed, as we have already mentioned, the famous research scientist Kirsch pooled data from over 18 separate controlled studies comparing the efficacy of CBH with other models and concluded that CBT was more effective when integrated with hypnosis for 70 to 90% of clients. Simply, the use of hypnosis during

the use of CBT models makes a huge difference What is Stoicism and How Does it Work Stoic philosophy is very much in accord with the ethics of personal improvement through cognitive restructuring. Indeed, the centre of stoic belief was not what a person said but how he behaved. Stoicism teaches the development of self-control and fortitude as a means of overcoming destructive emotions; the philosophy holds that becoming a clear and unbiased thinker allows one to understand the universal reason for life itself. For these reasons an understanding of the Stoic approach is an extremely valuable tool along the path of improvement and development. Stoicism is a school of applied philosophy that originated in 301 BC in ancient Greece. It was founded by Zeno of Citium, its name coming from the stoa poikile ("painted colonnade") where he trained his students. Unlike other schools of the time Zeno taught in the open public spaces. Stoicism flourished for many centuries, growing in influence and spreading to different countries over the years. The Romans, whose empire grew in the wake of the Greeks, admired their philosophy and found Stoicism particularly appealing. Influential Roman authors were Epictetus, Seneca, and Marcus Aurelius. The Essence of Stoicism The Stoics divided their philosophy into three parts: one physical, another ethical, and the third logical. Zeno was the first to make this tripartite division. The Stoics stressed, however, that these three divisions of philosophy are interdependent; one cannot study one without touching upon

the others. It was the ethics, however, that was so greatly valued among the later Stoics; Stoic ethical teaching provided its adherents with a theoretical framework with which to protect oneself psychologically against the stress of life. Stoicism was based upon a simple and logical set of philosophical principles. Research from the writings of the Roman authors mentioned above and other sources, have enabled us to put together an understanding of the stoic teachings. The basic principles of Stoicism are as follows: The Threefold Rule of Life: Be at one with all things. The Rule of Judgement: Distinguish between what is under your control and what is not. The Rule of Action: Take responsibility for your own thoughts and actions. The Rule of Fear and Desire: Unconditionally accept what is outside your control. Putting this philosophy into practice, in 167 AD the Roman Emperor and Stoic Marcus Aurelius developed a daily meditation strategy with which he would recant and affirm his values, beliefs and therefore reinforce his way of life. From book 2 of his meditations he wrote: “Begin the morning by saying to thyself, I shall meet with the busy-body, the ungrateful, arrogant, deceitful, envious, unsocial. All these things happen to them by reason of their ignorance of what is good and evil. But I who have seen the nature of the good that it is beautiful, and of the bad that it is ugly,

and the nature of him who does wrong, that it is akin to me, not only of the same blood or seed, but that it participates in the same intelligence and the same portion of the divinity, I can neither be injured by any of them, for no one can fix on me what is ugly, nor can I be angry with my kinsman, nor hate him, For we are made for co-operation, like feet, like hands, like eyelids, like the rows of the upper and lower teeth. To act against one another then is contrary to nature; and it is acting against one another to be vexed and to turn away. Whatever this is that I am, it is a little flesh and breath, and the ruling part. Throw away thy books; no longer distract thyself: it is not allowed; but as if thou was now dying, despise the flesh; it is blood and bones and a network, a contexture of nerves, veins, and arteries. See the breath also, what kind of a thing it is, air, and not always the same, but every moment sent out and again sucked in. The third then is the ruling part: consider thus: Thou art an old man; no longer let this be a slave, no longer be pulled by the strings like a puppet to unsocial movements, no longer either be dissatisfied with thy present lot, or shrink from the future. All that is from the gods is full of Providence. That which is from fortune is not separated from nature or without an interweaving and involution with the things which are ordered by Providence. From thence all things flow; and there is besides necessity, and that which is for the advantage of the whole universe, of which thou art a part. But that is good for every part of nature which the nature of the whole brings, and what serves to maintain this nature. Now the universe is preserved, as by the changes of the elements so by the changes of things compounded of the elements. Let these principles be enough for thee, let them always be fixed opinions. But cast away the thirst

after books, that thou mayest not die murmuring, but cheerfully, truly, and from thy heart thankful to the gods. Remember how long thou hast been putting off these things, and how often thou hast received an opportunity from the gods, and yet dost not use it. Thou must now at last perceive of what universe thou art a part, and of what administrator of the universe thy existence is an efflux, and that a limit of time is fixed for thee, which if thou dost not use for clearing away the clouds from thy mind, it will go and thou wilt go, and it will never return. Every moment think steadily as a Roman and a man to do what thou hast in hand with perfect and simple dignity, and feeling of affection, and freedom, and justice; and to give thyself relief from all other thoughts. And thou wilt give thyself relief, if thou doest every act of thy life as if it were the last, laying aside all carelessness and passionate aversion from the commands of reason, and all hypocrisy, and self-love, and discontent with the portion which has been given to thee. Thou seest how few the things are, the which if a man lays hold of, he is able to live a life which flows in quiet, and is like the existence of the gods; for the gods on their part will require nothing more from him who observes these things. Do wrong to thyself, do wrong to thyself, my soul; but thou wilt no longer have the opportunity of honouring thyself. Every man's life is sufficient. But thine is nearly finished, though thy soul reverences not itself but places thy felicity in the souls of others. Do the things external which fall upon thee distract thee? Give thyself time to learn something new and good and cease to be whirled around. But then thou

must also avoid being carried about the other way. For those too are triflers who have wearied themselves in life by their activity, and yet have no object to which to direct every movement, and, in a word, all their thoughts. Through not observing what is in the mind of another a man has seldom been seen to be unhappy; but those who do not observe the movements of their own minds must of necessity be unhappy. This thou must always bear in mind, what is the nature of the whole, and what is my nature, and how this is related to that, and what kind of a part it is of what kind of a whole; and that there is no one who hinders thee from always doing and saying the things which are according to the nature of which thou art a part. Theophrastus, in his comparison of bad acts- such a comparison as one would make in accordance with the common notions of mankind- says, like a true philosopher, that the offences which are committed through desire are more blameable than those which are committed through anger. For he who is excited by anger seems to turn away from reason with a certain pain and unconscious contraction; but he who offends through desire, being overpowered by pleasure, seems to be in a manner more intemperate and more womanish in his offences. Rightly then, and in a way worthy of philosophy, he said that the offence which is committed with pleasure is more blameable than that which is committed with pain; and on the whole the one is more like a person who has been first wronged and through pain is compelled to be angry; but the other is moved by his own impulse to do wrong, being carried towards doing something by desire.

Since it is possible that thou mayest depart from life this very moment, regulate every act and thought accordingly. But to go away from among men, if there are gods, is not a thing to be afraid of, for the gods will not involve thee in evil; but if indeed they do not exist, or if they have no concern about human affairs, what is it to me to live in a universe devoid of gods or devoid of Providence? But in truth they do exist, and they do care for human things, and they have put all the means in man's power to enable him not to fall into real evils. And as to the rest, if there was anything evil, they would have provided for this also, that it should be altogether in a man's power not to fall into it. Now that which does not make a man worse, how can it make a man's life worse? But neither through ignorance, nor having the knowledge, but not the power to guard against or correct these things, is it possible that the nature of the universe has overlooked them; nor is it possible that it has made so great a mistake, either through want of power or want of skill, that good and evil should happen indiscriminately to the good and the bad. But death certainly, and life, honour and dishonour, pain and pleasure, all these things equally happen to good men and bad, being things, which make us neither better nor worse. Therefore, they are neither good nor evil. How quickly all things disappear, in the universe the bodies themselves, but in time the remembrance of them; what is the nature of all sensible things, and particularly those which attract with the bait of pleasure or terrify by pain, or are noised abroad by vapoury fame; how worthless, and contemptible, and sordid, and perishable, and dead they are- all this it is the part of the intellectual faculty to observe.

To observe too who these are whose opinions and voices give reputation; what death is, and the fact that, if a man looks at it in itself, and by the abstractive power of reflection resolves into their parts all the things which present themselves to the imagination in it, he will then consider it to be nothing else than an operation of nature; and if anyone is afraid of an operation of nature, he is a child. This, however, is not only an operation of nature, but it is also a thing which conduces to the purposes of nature. To observe too how man comes near to the deity, and by what part of him, and when this part of man is so disposed. Nothing is more wretched than a man who traverses everything in a round, and pries into the things beneath the earth, as the poet says, and seeks by conjecture what is in the minds of his neighbours, without perceiving that it is sufficient to attend to the daemon within him, and to reverence it sincerely. And reverence of the daemon consists in keeping it pure from passion and thoughtlessness, and dissatisfaction with what comes from gods and men. For the things from the gods merit veneration for their excellence; and the things from men should be dear to us by reason of kinship; and sometimes even, in a manner, they move our pity by reason of men's ignorance of good and bad; this defect being not less than that which deprives us of the power of distinguishing things that are white and black. Though thou shouldst be going to live three thousand years, and as many times ten thousand years, still remember that no man loses any other life than this which he now lives, nor lives any other than this which he now loses. The longest and shortest are thus brought to the same. For the present is the same to all, though that which perishes is not the same; and so that which is lost

appears to be a mere moment. For a man cannot lose either the past or the future: for what a man has not, how can anyone take this from him? These two things then thou must bear in mind; the one, that all things from eternity are of like forms and come round in a circle, and that it makes no difference whether a man shall see the same things during a hundred years or two hundred, or an infinite time; and the second, that the longest liver and he who will die soonest lose just the same. For the present is the only thing of which a man can be deprived, if it is true that this is the only thing which he has, and that a man cannot lose a thing if he has it not. Remember that all is opinion. For what was said by the Cynic Monimus is manifest: and manifest too is the use of what was said, if a man receives what may be got out of it as far as it is true. The soul of man does violence to itself, first of all, when it becomes an abscess and, as it were, a tumour on the universe, so far as it can. For to be vexed at anything which happens is a separation of ourselves from nature, in some part of which the natures of all other things are contained. In the next place, the soul does violence to itself when it turns away from any man, or even moves towards him with the intention of injuring, such as are the souls of those who are angry. In the third place, the soul does violence to itself when it is overpowered by pleasure or by pain. Fourthly, when it plays a part, and does or says anything insincerely and untruly. Fifthly, when it allows any act of its own and any movement to be without an aim, and does anything thoughtlessly and without considering what it is, it being right that even the smallest things be done with reference to an end; and the end of rational animals is to follow the reason and the law of the most ancient city and polity.

Of human life the time is a point, and the substance is in a flux, and the perception dull, and the composition of the whole body subject to putrefaction, and the soul a whirl, and fortune hard to divine, and fame a thing devoid of judgement. And, to say all in a word, everything which belongs to the body is a stream, and what belongs to the soul is a dream and vapour, and life is a warfare and a stranger's sojourn, and after-fame is oblivion. What then is that which is able to conduct a man? One thing and only one, philosophy. But this consists in keeping the daemon within a man free from violence and unharmed, superior to pains and pleasures, doing nothing without purpose, nor yet falsely and with hypocrisy, not feeling the need of another man's doing or not doing anything; and besides, accepting all that happens, and all that is allotted, as coming from thence, wherever it is, from whence he himself came; and, finally, waiting for death with a cheerful mind, as being nothing else than a dissolution of the elements of which every living being is compounded. But if there is no harm to the elements themselves in each continually changing into another, why should a man have any apprehension about the change and dissolution of all the elements? For it is according to nature, and nothing is evil which is according to nature”. Can you see the relevance to affirmations here? Furthermore, from book 11 of meditations, Marcus Aurelius wrote his strategy to deal with situations when you may find yourself being offended by other people’s actions: Remember the close bond between yourself and the rest of mankind.

Think of the characters of those who offend you at the table, in their beds, and so on. In particular, remember the effect their negative way of thinking has on them, and the misplaced confidence it gives them in their actions. If what they're doing is right, you've no reason to complain; and if it's not right, then it must have been involuntary and unintentional. Because just as "no-one ever deliberately denies the truth," according to Socrates, so nobody ever intentionally treats another person badly. That's why these negative people are themselves insulted if anyone accuses them of injustice, ingratitude, meanness, or any other sort of offence against their neighbours -they just don't realise they're doing wrong. You yourself, are no different from them, and upset people in various ways. You might avoid making some mistakes, but the thought and inclination is still there, even if cowardice or egotism or some other negative motive has held you back you from copying their mistakes. Remember, you've got no guarantee they're doing the wrong thing anyway, people's motives aren't always what they seem. There's usually a lot to learn before any sure- footed moral judgements can be made about other people's actions. Tell yourself, when you feel upset and fed up, that human life is transient and only lasts a moment; it won't be long before we'll all have been laid to rest.

It's not the actions of these men that upsets us that's their own problem but the colour we put on them ourselves. Get rid of this, make a decision to quit thinking of things as insulting, and your anger immediately disappears. How do you get rid of these thoughts? By realizing that you've not really been harmed by their actions. Moreover, unless genuine harm to your soul is all that worries you, you'll wind up being guilty of all sorts of offences against other people yourself. Anger and frustration hurt us more than the things we're annoyed about hurt us. Kindness is an irresistible force, so long as it's genuine and without any fake smiles or two-facedness. Even the most stubborn bad attitude is nothing, if you just keep being nice to the person concerned. Politely comment on his behaviour when you get the chance and, just when he's about to have another go at you, gently make him self- conscious by saying "No, my son; we're not meant for this. I'll not be hurt; you're just hurting yourself." Subtly draw his attention to this general fact; even bees and other animals that live in groups don't act like he does. Do it without any hint of sarcasm or nit-picking, though; do it with real affection and with your heart free from resentment. Don't talk to him harshly like a schoolteacher or try to impress bystanders but, even though other people may be around, talk as if you're alone together in private. Keep these nine pieces of advice in mind, like nine gifts from the Muses; and while there's still life in you, begin at last to be a man. While guarding

yourself against being angry with others, though, be just as careful to avoid the opposite extreme, of toadying. One's just as bad as the other, and both cause problems. With bouts of rage, always remind yourself that losing your temper is no sign of manhood. On the contrary, there's more strength, as well as more natural humanity, in someone capable of remaining calm and gentle. He proves he's got strength and nerve and guts, unlike his angry, complaining friend. Anger's just as much a sign of weakness as bubbling with tears; in both cases we're giving in to suffering. Finally, a tenth idea, this time from the very leader of the Muses, Apollo himself. To expect bad men never to do bad things is just madness; it's asking the impossible. And to let them abuse other people, and expect them to leave you alone, that is arrogance. Marcus Aurelius (The Meditations, 167 AD) Much of this philosophy and many of these Stoic principles and strategies are the basis for modern day personal improvement and therapy. In essence, the Stoic approach was to set, what we now know through science, are our neural links, which in turn control our behaviours, our thoughts and our emotional intelligence. By redefining our thought pathways, we can change our future and become the person that we thought we always could be. Unfortunately, many of today’s life coaches, gurus and improvement trainers have no idea where, what they are teaching originates this is a major weakness which this book addresses. Hypnotic Self-Help, Induction and Deepening Models One of the oldest, and simplest methods of training in self-hypnosis was

traditionally called "automatic self-hypnosis", because it involved installing a trigger or suggestion for hypnosis which you repeatedly practice during the hypnotic state. The process is: Hypnotise hypnotic. Deepen hypnosis. Install and rehearse trigger/suggestion by repeated re-induction of hypnosis. Emerge hypnotic. Test trigger post-hypnotically. You can induce hypnosis in any manner you choose, the more deepeners and convincers you use the better the response will be. As you do so you are going to accomplish three things at once, Installing and reinforcing the hypnotic trigger. Allowing the subject to rehearse using the trigger to put themselves into hypnosis. Deepening by repeated re-induction. By following this process you are placing suggestions directly into the unconscious mind unprotected by your daily cognitive processes which, as we have learned in Chapter 1, are controlled to a major extent by your psychological filters of deletion, generalization and distortion which in turn have created your values, reality system and day to day neurology which to date have not given you the success that you seek. This is such an important point and I cannot reinforce it enough. This understanding and unconscious

change is the key to you becoming unstoppable and achieving your true potential. Hypnotic Inductions and Deepener Models There are several distinctions or approaches about trance inductions. There is the approach to the individual (you) the approach to trance, and the approach to the induction. Each of these varies with the type of hypnosis used be they, direct, indirect, permissive, authoritarian, sleep or wake hypnosis. Within this chapter you are provided with induction and deepening techniques. Many thousands of induction and deepening models can be found on the internet. However, for the purpose of introducing and learning Neuroscience based CBH these models will suffice. As a first script this contains an induction, deepener and emergence. It includes the pre-talk to the client if you wish t test this model out on a friend. Suggestions from the list of neuro hacks in Chapter 4 should be inserted as shown in accordance with the neuro hack breakthrough you are wanting to improve. Before you start the induction, it is important to understand what you are going to do and what you should be doing throughout the process. This is referred to as the pre-talk. For the purpose of this book it is important to emphasize some words and to use pauses. I have indicated where you should emphasize a word by using capitals. You should pause after a word where I have inserted a blue hyphen. This works better if you record the scripts and play them back to yourself. Again, please do not play these scripts when driving or operating any machinery. I have provided 3 distinctly separate scripts for your learning:

Breathing Based Induction – add your favourite neuro hack from Chapter 4 to the suggestions section. Directive Induction – a suggestions section is not needed here. Ego Boost – I have added 2 new affirmations as suggestions t this technique The scripts are in italics. In the relevant suggestions place you should insert your favourite neuro hack from Chapter 4 or use one of your own. 1. Breathing Induction Pre-talk “Relax and place your feet flat on the floor, and rest your hands upon your lap, palms upwards. In a moment, I'm going to help you to enter hypnosis and benefit from positive suggestions. Your role in hypnosis is to remain as physically still and mentally receptive as possible. Keep thinking positively, and just imagine agreeing with everything I say. You will be aware of everything I say, and you will only accept suggestions which you choose to accept. During this process, any sounds from around the room or sensations in your body will simply cause you to go deeper into hypnosis. Just follow my instructions carefully and you will soon discover that you already have the potential to be an excellent hypnotic subject”. Induction “Now, I want you to lie back and relax and close your eyes. As you close your eyes, you are able to concentrate and use your imagination. Now I want to begin by asking you to focus your attention on your breathing. Concentrate and listen to the sound of your own breathing and be aware of how rhythmic

and automatic your breathing actually is. It's so easy, so relaxing, and so effortless. As you continue to focus on your breathing, you may even notice that the sound and rhythm of your breathing reminds you of the sound and rhythm of the ocean. Its waves rush onto the shore and then slowly return to the sea. As you continue focusing on this sound and image, I want you to take a full deep breath and completely fill your lungs. Fill your lungs with air and hold that for a few seconds. And then, very, very slowly, let the air out feeling your lungs contract and your bodies relax as you slowly exhale. Then take a few regular breaths. And repeat that process of one deep breath followed by a few regular breaths. Do these while I give you some instructions. You may from time to time become aware of some distractions around you. These sounds are very unimportant and very far away. Right now, focus your total attention on the sound of my voice and on the rhythm of my voice. And what you will find is that the more I speak the more relaxed you will become. Now I want to begin by asking you to visualize or imagine your body in your mind. Imagine that instead of being composed of muscle bone and tissue, imagine that your body is like a balloon full of air. Picture this image of yourself in your mind and feel it in your body. Focus your attention on this image of your body. Full of air and feeling very light, very relaxed, and very much at rest so light and relaxed. In fact, you may even begin to feel as if you are barely touching the surface beneath you. Almost as if the more relaxed you become the lighter you feel, feeling lighter

and more relaxed with every single breath. More relaxed than you have ever felt before. You are feeling very peaceful very comfortable very safe and always very much in control. You are able to leave this very relaxed and comfortable state any time you desire; any time you open your eyes. Now as you continue relax deeper and deeper, I want you to imagine that every time you exhale you are letting a little bit of air out of this balloon image of yourself. That is every time you breathe out, I want you to feel yourself deflating ever so slightly, just as a balloon will deflate as you slowly release the air from inside it. Every time you breathe out your body will relax more and more as you slowly and continuously release more and more air from your body. As you continue this process you will be able to feel your body steadily deflating. As you begin to feel that you are melting into the surface beneath you, be aware of how good you are beginning to feel. Very safe. Very relaxed. Very comfortable and very much in control as you begin, right now, to become very much aware of the difference between your physical self, which is your body, and your mental self, which is your mind. For even though they share the same space, your body and your mind are two separate entities working together as one unit. This is very much like the working relationship between a car and its driver. As I continue to speak you will become more and more aware of your mind and less and less aware of your body. You can let go of your body, now, and allow every muscle and every nerve to just melt into the surface beneath you. It is as though you are losing contact with your physical self, now, and have put your body on automatic pilot to operate freely and safely on its own

without your conscious assistance. You begin to notice now, right now, that it is becoming almost impossible to tell the difference between where your body ends and the surface beneath you. It is almost as if your body is becoming a part of the surface beneath you, and the more relaxed that you become the more content and peaceful you will feel. As you continue this process of deflating and relaxing, I want to speak to the unconscious part of your mind. I want to speak to the part that operates outside your awareness, that part that controls your actions, the part that dictates how you feel what you think and do what you do. I want to speak to that part of you without any interference from your conscious mind. I want to speak to that part of you about accomplishment, about motivation, and about control. Deepening Section “Good. Now take a breath and send a wave of pleasant relaxation through your body and your mind. As you do so, let go and relax completely. You are calm, still very deeply relaxed. The sound of my voice will guide you deeper and deeper, and more and more relaxed. Following my suggestions takes you deeper into relaxation. You are safe and secure. Outside noises will not disturb or distract you in any way. Your mind will always come back to the sound of my voice. The sound of my voice guides you deeper relaxed. The deeper you go, the better you feel, as your body and mind doubles its relaxation with every gentle breath you exhale. Now imagine in front of you that there is a long circular staircase that is leading way down into relaxation. It's endless; there is no end or bottom.

We've never found the bottom of relaxation. With every breath you exhale, you take a step down, another step down this staircase of relaxation. It is taking you deeper and deeper. Now, letting go, letting go completely, it goes on forever. So I want you to accept this suggestion. Whenever you are in this beautiful state and hear my voice, every breath you exhale takes you down another step on this staircase, now. Every breath you exhale takes you deeper and deeper down, step by step. More calm, more relaxed, going deeper and deeper with every breath and step down the staircase. Let go and relax completely and again relax, let go and relax completely. Suggestions Section At this point you should select your favourite neuro hack from Chapter 4 or series of affirmations from the book. You can repeat this section 4 or 5 times. Following which you should commence the Emergence below Emerging “Now, in a moment, I'm going to begin counting from 1 all the way up to 5. And with each number I count, you are now emerging with a wonderful experience of profound hypnotic transformation. The many positive suggestions which you have already accepted and internalized will remain with you and continue to grow stronger and more beneficial with each day that passes. As I count, you're beginning to feel more alive, more aware, and more alert when I reach the number five, open your eyes and you feel wonderfully good, peaceful and relaxed. Beginning now: 1 --- 2 --- 3 --- 4 --- 5 --- Opening your eyes now, looking forward once again --- (Clap your hands) How do you feel

now; feels good?” 2. Directive Induction This is a very direct and assertive script. Many people like this aggressive approach others do not. Either way it is a good idea to practice all forms of induction to find what suits you. Due to the direct nature of this work it is important that you follow the instructions exactly. If you find that you anticipate the instruction go back and follow what is being said. A suggestions section is not needed here. Pre-talk “Relax and place your feet flat on the floor, and rest your hands upon your lap, palms upwards. In a moment, I'm going to help you to enter hypnosis and benefit from positive suggestions. Your role in hypnosis is to remain as physically still and mentally receptive as possible. Keep thinking positively, and just imagine agreeing with everything I say. You will be aware of everything I say, and you will only accept suggestions which you choose to accept. During this process, any sounds from around the room or sensations in your body will simply cause you to go deeper into hypnosis. Just follow my instructions carefully and you will soon discover that you already have the potential to be an excellent hypnotic subject”. “Now take a long deep breath and hold it for a few seconds. As you breath out, allow your eyes to close and let go of the surface tension in your body. Just let your body relax as much as possible right now.

Relax the Eyes Now, place your awareness on your eye muscles and mentally loosen and relax all those little muscles around your eyes so much that they just won't work. When you're sure they're so relaxed that, as long as you hold on to this relaxation, they just won't work, hold on to that relaxation and test them to make sure they won't work. Let It Flow Through the Whole Body Now, this relaxation you have in your eyes is the same quality of relaxation that I want you to have throughout your whole body. So, just let this quality of relaxation flow through your whole body from the top of your head to the tips of your toes. Open & Close the Eyes Now, we can deepen this relaxation much more. In a moment, I'm going to have you open and close your eyes. When you close your eyes that's your signal to let this feeling of relaxation become ten times deeper. All you have to do is want it to happen, and you can make it happen very easily. Okay, now, open your eyes. Now close your eyes and feel that relaxation flowing through your entire body, taking you much deeper, 10 times deeper relaxed. Use your wonderful imagination and imagine your whole body is covered and wrapped in a warm blanket of relaxation. Now, we can deepen this relaxation much more. In a moment, I'm going to have you open and close your eyes one more time and, when you close your eyes, double the relaxation you now have. Make it become twice as deep. Okay, now, once more, open your eyes, and close your eyes and double your

relaxation. Good. Let every muscle in your body become so relaxed that as long as you hold on to this quality of relaxation, every muscle of your body will not work. In a moment, I'm going to have you open and close your eyes one more time. Again, when you close your eyes, double the relaxation you now have. Make it become twice as deep. Okay, now, once more, open your eyes, and close your eyes and double your relaxation ... good. Let every muscle in your body become so relaxed that as long as you hold on to this quality of relaxation, every muscle of your body will not work. Test for Relaxation In a moment, I'm going to lift your right hand by the wrist, just a few inches, and drop it. If you have followed my instructions up to this point, that hand will be so relaxed it will be just as loose and limp as a wet dish cloth and will simply plop down. Now don't try to help me. Let me do all the lifting so that when I release it, it just plops down, and you'll allow yourself to go much deeper. Now, that's complete physical relaxation. I want you to know that there are two ways a person can relax. You can relax physically, and you can relax mentally. You already proved that you could relax physically, now let me show you how to relax mentally. Mental Relaxation Visualize a large black board with all the numbers from 100 down to 1 written on it. In a moment, I'll ask you to begin to slowly count backwards, out loud, starting from 100. Now, here's the secret to mental relaxation, with each number you say, double your mental relaxation. With each number you

say, let your mind become twice as relaxed. Now if you do this, by the time you reach the number 98, or maybe even sooner, your mind will have become so relaxed, you will have actually relaxed all the rest of the numbers that would have come after 98, right ... out of your mind. There just won't be any more numbers. Now, you have to do this, I can't do it for you. Those numbers will leave if you will them away. Now start with the idea that you will make that happen, and you can easily dispel them from your mind. Want it to happen, will it to happen, make it happen. Now, say the first number, 100 and double your mental relaxation. Deeper relaxed. Now, double that mental relaxation and let those numbers already start to fade. What's the next number? Deeper relaxed. Double your mental relaxation. Start to make those numbers leave. They'll go if you will them away. The next number? Deeper relaxed. Now, they'll be gone. Dispel them. Banish them. Make it happen, you can do it, I can't do it for you. Put them out. Make it happen! Are they all gone? Are they, out of your mind now?'' After allowing your subject some time to enjoy their relaxing state you can emerge them form hypnosis using a standard emergence pattern. Emerging “Now, in a moment, I'm going to begin counting from 1 all the way up to 5. And with each number I count, you are now emerging with a wonderful

experience of profound hypnotic transformation. The deep relaxation which you have experienced is already accepted and internalized and will remain with you and continue to grow stronger and more beneficial with each day that passes and the more times that you practice. As I count, you're beginning to feel more alive, more aware, and more alert ... when I reach the number five, open your eyes and you feel wonderfully good, peaceful and relaxed. Beginning now: 1 --- 2 --- 3 --- 4 --- 5 --Opening your eyes now, looking forward once again ... (Clap your hands). How do you feel now; feels good?” 3. Ego Strengthening – With Suggestions This script is based on an 'ego-strengthening' process and readily supports your progress towards unstoppability. The technique is very straightforward, and employs direct suggestions of a highly general nature, aimed at increasing confidence. Because of its simplicity this script is well suited to first time self-hypnosis practice. Pre-Talk Place your feet flat on the floor, and rest your hands upon your lap, palms upwards. In a moment, I'm going to help you to enter hypnosis and benefit from positive suggestions. Your role in hypnosis is to remain as physically still and mentally receptive as possible. Keep thinking positively, and just imagine agreeing with everything I say. You will be aware of everything I say, and you will only accept suggestions which you choose to accept.

During this process, any sounds from around the room or sensations in your body will simply cause you to go deeper into hypnosis. Just follow my instructions carefully and you will soon discover that you already have the potential to be an excellent hypnotic subject. Induction Now, I want you to lie back and relax and close your eyes. As you close your eyes, you are able to concentrate and use your imagination. Now I want to begin by asking you to focus your attention on your breathing. Concentrate and listen to the sound of your own breathing and be aware of how rhythmic and automatic your breathing actually is. It's so easy, so relaxing, and so effortless breathing deeply and slowly. Before you let go completely, and go into a deep hypnotic state, just let yourself listen carefully to everything I say to you. It's going to happen automatically, so you don't need to think about that now. The muscles in and around your eyes will relax all by themselves as you continue breathing, easily and freely. Without thinking about it, you will soon enter a deep, peaceful, relaxed state without any effort. There is nothing important for your conscious mind to do. There is nothing really important except the activities of your unconscious mind, and that can be just as automatic as dreaming. And you know how easily you can forget your dreams when you awaken. Now, in a moment, I'm going to begin counting back from five all the way down to zero. As I count, count down with me in your mind. Imagine with each number we count that your eyelids feel more heavy, tired, and sleepy.

Let them close just as soon as they want to close. Beginning now, five, four, three, two, one, zero. Let your eyelids close all the way down and relax completely – sleep now. Relax your eyes completely Relax your face completely - Relax your body completely - Relax your mind completely – sleep now. Deepening Section “Good. Now take a breath and send a wave of pleasant relaxation through your body and your mind. As you do so, let go and relax completely. You are calm, still very deeply relaxed. The sound of my voice will guide you deeper and deeper, and more and more relaxed. Following my suggestions takes you deeper into relaxation. You are safe and secure. Outside noises will not disturb or distract you in any way. Your mind will always come back to the sound of my voice. The sound of my voice guides you deeper relaxed. The deeper you go, the better you feel, as your body and mind doubles its relaxation with every gentle breath you exhale. Now imagine in front of you that there is a long circular staircase that is leading way down into relaxation. It's endless; there is no end or bottom. We've never found the bottom of relaxation. With every breath you exhale, you take a step down, another step down this staircase of relaxation. It is taking you deeper and deeper. Now, letting go, letting go completely, it goes on forever. So, I want you to accept this suggestion. Whenever you are in this beautiful state and hear my voice, every breath you exhale takes you down another step on this staircase, now. Every breath you exhale takes you

deeper and deeper down, step by step. More calm, more relaxed, going deeper and deeper with every breath and step down the staircase. Let go and relax completely and again relax, let go and relax completely. You're now growing so deeply relaxed, and your mind is becoming so responsive, and so receptive to these words, that everything I now suggest to you, is sinking so deeply into your mind, and making so deep and lasting an impression there, that it takes root permanently and grows there powerfully and effectively. You have now become so deeply relaxed, so deeply asleep, that your mind has become so sensitive, so receptive to these words and what I say, that everything that I suggest to you will sink so deeply into the unconscious part of your mind and will cause so deep and lasting an impression there that it will take root and grow effectively. These things that I put into your unconscious mind will begin to exercise a greater and greater influence over the way you think, over the way you feel, over the way you behave. And because these things will remain, firmly imbedded in the unconscious part of your mind, after you have left here, when you are no longer with me, they will continue to exercise the same great influence, over your thoughts, your feelings, and your actions, just as strongly just as surely, just as powerfully, when you are back home, or at work, as when you are with me here at this time. You are now so very deeply relaxed, that every single suggestion is being

absorbed, very deeply indeed, and you will experience things, and these words will help you, exactly as I say, and in a way that suits your life, your personality, and your personal goals and values, And every feeling, that I tell you that you will experience, you will experience, exactly as I suggest. And many good things will continue to happen to you, every day, and you will continue to experience these same feelings, every day, just as strongly, just as surely, just as powerfully, when you are back home, or at work, or anywhere else. Suggestions During this deep sleep, you are going to feel physically stronger and fitter in every way. You will feel more alert, wider awake, more energetic. You will become much less easily tired, much less easily fatigued, much less easily discouraged, much less easily depressed. Every day you will become so deeply interested in whatever you are doing, in whatever is going on around you, that your mind will become completely distracted away from yourself. You will no longer think nearly so much about yourself, you will no longer dwell nearly so much upon yourself and your difficulties and you will become much less conscious of yourself, much less preoccupied with yourself and with your own feelings. Every day your nerves will become stronger and steadier, your mind calmer and clearer, more composed, more placid, more tranquil. You will become much less easily worried, much less easily agitated, much less easily fearful and apprehensive and much less easily upset. And so, your memory is rapidly improving, and you are now able to see

things in their true perspective, in proportion and in a healthy balanced and reasonable way. Every day you now grow more emotionally calm, much more settled, much more serene and contented. Every day you now become and you will remain, more and more completely relaxed and at ease, both mentally and physically. And, as you become, and as you remain, more relaxed each day, so you now develop much more confidence in yourself, more, confidence in your ability to do things, not only in what you have to do each day, but confidence in whatever you wish to do or imagine yourself doing. And so, every day you now feel more and more emotionally secure and independent more able to stick up for yourself and assert yourself, to stand upon your own two feet. Every day you will feel a greater feeling of personal well-being. A greater feeling of personal safety and security than you have felt for a long, long time. And because all these things will begin to happen, exactly as I tell you they will happen, more and more rapidly, powerfully, and completely, with every treatment I give you, you will feel much happier, much more contented, much more optimistic in every way. You will consequently become much more able to rely upon, to depend upon, yourself, your own efforts, your own judgment, your own opinions. You will feel much less need, to have to rely upon or to depend upon other people. Further Suggestions Now, in a moment, I'll begin repeating a simple, powerful affirmation which reinforces all of those positive ideas. Listen to the words, "Every day, I now feel more peace, strength, and self- confidence".

Every time I repeat those words that suggestion is penetrating two times deeper into your mind, creating a more powerful, beneficial and lasting transformation in your feelings and behaviour. Imagine yourself repeating and reinforcing the suggestion along with me... Beginning now, "Every day, I now feel more peace, strength, and self-confidence." Repeat "Every day, I now feel more peace, strength, and self-confidence." 5 times. Emerging from Hypnosis Now, in a moment, I'm going to begin counting from 1 all the way up to 5. And with each number I count, you are now emerging with a wonderful experience of profound hypnotic transformation. The many positive suggestions which you have already accepted and internalized will remain with you and continue to grow stronger and more beneficial with each day that passes. As I count, you're beginning to feel more alive, more aware, and more alert --- when I reach the number five, open your eyes and you feel wonderfully good, peaceful and relaxed. Beginning now: one, two, three, four, five, opening your eyes now, looking forward once again - clap hands. How do you feel now; feels good?

Chapter 8 Bringing It All Together In life you will need to find keys to move from one level to the next. These keys come in many forms and provide access for different “doors” which enable you to move from one stage into the next. Some people never find the right keys, some by choice others through ignorance. Also, many people go through life without finding keys and as a consequence fail to achieve their potential. You will instinctively know when you have found a key as it is normally accompanied by a “ah-ah” moment of realisation. This book is aimed to deliver to you a number of keys. Whether you personally find them useful is up to you. Many of my students have. Moreover, what you do with them is also up to you and I would counsel you against just throwing the keys away. Winston Churchill the great British War Prime Minister once said that people walk over and dismiss opportunities every day because they are blinded by their own thoughts. As we have discovered within this book there is a scientific reason, your psychological filters, that are blind-siding you from delivering your potential through these missed opportunities. In addition, to providing these keys to you, we have also discussed how you can hack your neurology in many different ways to open your eyes to potential and in doing so find more keys. I have also found that sometimes the same key opens open several doors!

The first part of the book talks about the science behind how you have become who you are and why, along with some neuro processes (hacks) which will change your neurology and your perspectives on life. You should familiarize yourself and fully understand these rules behind neuroscience, particularly the amygdala hijack. Indeed, understanding is the foundation that supports becoming unstoppable. I have then provided you with a series of neuro hacks that you can use to unlock the necessary levels in your life to make you unstoppable in whatever it is you choose to succeed at. Some of the hacks are short and these are aimed at making you think in a flash card type of way of things you might have missed in life. Others are several pages long and these hacks are aimed at directly rewiring of your neural links. All are aimed at changing your perspective. People are different and will therefore respond differently to each of the hacks. Some you will relate to others you won’t. This is natural as you do not have to respond to all of the hacks at this time. You might change your mind in the future but either way it’s always your choice. For now though use those hacks that resonate with you and disregard those that you don’t think matter at this time to your particular situation. The goals and journal chapters are extremely important for 2 reasons: Firstly, if you don’t know where you are going to any path will do. You can always change direction at any time however, you should start out with a destination in mind. Moreover, your unconscious mind needs to understand exactly what it is that you want. You then keep reinforcing

what you want by following each Chapter in this book. This is why it is so important for you to hack your neurology. People who don’t have goals flit from on thing to another and like a cloud in the sky will just float aimlessly at the will of the winds Secondly, it is so important that you document your progress and to reinforce the good things that will happen to you over the coming months. Make sure that you record both the positive and negative aspects of your day. Finally, if you find yourself procrastinating or in a stuck state remember these simple rules in life:

Chapter 9 About the Author

During a long career in the military I underwent several prototype mental strengthening programs which meant that I could not fail at anything I did. Using mental strengthening and survival stories I teach mental strengthening, leadership, personal and team building strategies that brought success. I have also used this same methodology within the corporate, professional sports and governments under my Organizational Neurology ™ program of work. I joined the Royal Air Force at 17 as an aircraft mechanic. I had effectively been kicked out of the family home, I had no qualifications, I had low selfesteem and confidence and I was by far the youngest within a 100-plus aircraft engineering team. I suffered significant “banter” by Air Force colleagues. To the extent that I was physically hung as part of a prank! I was

trapped, tied up and hung on an engine lift hoist high up in an aircraft maintenance hangar. Unfortunately, this “banter” went wrong! Just before I passed out, I was cut down by an aircraft flying instructor who unusually that day had decided to walk through the hangar to the flight line. This “banter” continued for several more months culminating in my attempted suicide - I was still not 18! Obviously, the suicide didn’t work and a few weeks later I was visited in my barrack block by a volunteer from the camp church. He had been sent by the padre. It turned out that this guy, an ex-Jewish WW2 resistance fighter and Commando, who was captured and survived a concentration camp was now a research behavioural psychologist and he was working with special forces and other similar organizations to improve mental strengthening. I didn’t know it at the time but I was to become Martin’s “test bench”! Over the next 6 months I attended numerous retreats with other “volunteers” from the marines and army. I learned about neurology, naturally occurring brain chemicals such as dopamine, serotonin and oxytocin and how you could manipulate these chemicals in addition to re-aligning what we now know to be psychological filters of generalization, deletion and distortion to achieve huge improvement in personal potential and productivity particularly under intense stress. It was a very structured and teachable process that worked!

The author “strapping into” a 5 Squadron Air Defence Jet Fighter My change in physiology and behavior was palpable and I was seeing life through a new incredibly powerful lens. Within a year I had been accepted for technician training, something that would normally take 3 years at least, and thankfully posted away from the base where I had such lows and highs. In the following years my new approach to life led to significant opportunities and happiness. I undertook day release at the local college and obtained the qualifications I needed to apply for officer selection and training. I graduated from the Royal Air Force College Cranwell in 1986 as an Engineering Flying Officer. One of the greatest achievements in my life was receiving my Commissioning Scroll signed by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II. See the image below.

I was rapidly promoted to Flight Lieutenant and then Squadron Leader and acting Wing Commander. Following many appointments in out of area operational deployments. I utilized the training that I had received from Martin to support individuals and teams to reach exceptional performance and productivity under very extreme operational conditions. Moreover, I added to Martin’s research and delivery methodology to design this book and my Destiny Paradigm Program. I have designed and led on several courses based on my learnings and I have presented as a professional speaker in the UK, Germany and the USA. I have a social media following of 1.6 million and growing daily. As you can tell my career to date has had some pretty life defining points and I relate all my success to what Martin taught me all those years ago. And I am going to pass on that same training and development to you.

Chapter 10 Index of Neuroscience Hacks 1. Universal Facts of Your Life 2. Meditation and Other Brain-Calming Practice – Including Mindfulness Body Scan Script 3. Neuro Hacks Help You to Learn Faster 4. Emotional Mastery 5. Reciprocal Neurology Hacks – 3 super reciprocal mind body hacks 6. Proven Neuroscience Techniques to Career Improvement 7. The Meaning of Life 8. The 80/20 Principle 9. Practice Positive Thoughts 10. Exercise on A Regular Basis 11. Get Plenty of Sleep 12. Coue’s Laws of Suggestion and Neuro Hack Affirmations 13. Happiness 14. Dream Incubator 15. Hawai’ian Prayer 16. Perspectives – A View from Above 17. Reconstruct Your Memories 18. Managing Trust 19. Neuroscience of Leadership 20. Neuroscience of Safety 21. Neuroscience of Effective Branding 22. Neuroscience - The Key To Success In The Boardroom

23. High Performance Can be Toxic 24. Stoa Poikile Memory Strengthening 25. Breakthrough 26. Find time to detach from work 27. Avoid Processed Sugar and Artificial Sweeteners 28. Begin Each Day 29. Flexibility of Thought 30. The Game of Life and How to Play It 31. Acting 32. Understand Your Fears to Reach Your Objectives 33. Get into The Zone 34. Dream Catcher 35. Do It Right 36. Turbocharged Habits 37. Develop Your Internal Energy