With April Fools approaching, it sparked my thinking about how our brains can play tricks on us.
One headline I read two days after April 1st was something about Vail Resorts banning the sale of alcohol at all of its 19 properties. My first reaction was, “Really?! Hmm. I guess I could see why they might do that — I suppose it would make skiing safer.” I’m embarrassed to say it took me a minute or two to recognize that it was an April Fools headline. But pretty clever nonetheless.
Why would my brain fall for that?
- It was supposedly a news headline, but at second glance the news header said, “Unofficial Networks.”
- I could see a good reason for it, meaning there was a possible safety factor behind it.
- I was skimming my phone, so not thoroughly paying attention.
But, my brain believed it, at least for a minute — because I found a good reason for it.
So what if we could coax our brains to believe something if even for a minute, that might help get us where we want to go in our career, life, or leadership?
Tips to Coax Your Brain Into Believing in Your Dreams
If you were to write a news headline about yourself that could possibly be true, what would it say?
For example:
- Local leadership coach interviewed by Forbes, sharing secrets for equity and inclusion.
- Coach Jane Doe puts a fresh spin on retirement, launching new Second Half Career Coaching.
- Coaching guru sees clients land huge raises in their leadership trajectory.
- Motivational speaker Jax Dokes draws a crowd of 500 for secrets to getting unstuck.
- The business school career coaching team sees 100% placement for students just six weeks from graduation.
So go for it! Write your own headline. And give yourself a good reason why it could be true. See what happens!