Psycho-Cybernetics - See Yourself at Your Best
Matt Furey's Super Human Success Blog
Don’t just read about it. DO about it. That is the way of progress. Successful people are in the habit of reading – then doing. They don’t just read. To read and NOT do a big head maketh. You may think you know because you have read about it. But you cannot truly know what you have not experienced.
Matt Furey
P.S. To experience success at the highest level – get the Zero Resistance Living System
Earlier today I received a DVD in the mail. It contained all my Psycho-Cyb talks – in Chinese – to the students at the second Matt Furey Hope School my wife and I opened in China.
I popped it in the computer to watch. While doing so I didn’t just think about these children. I also thought about the 900 kids who are trapped inside the rubble after a 7.9 earthquake shook China so hard it could be felt all the way to Thailand, Vietnam and Pakistan.
Now that’s some earthquake.
I’ve made a few calls and sent several emails to friends and family to make sure everyone is alright – and if not – have pledged my support to help in any way I can.
Steve, a friend living with his family in Xian – had planned a trip to Holland this weekend but is staying home as his two children need a little reassurance. Steve said events like this help him to re-examine his priorities. How true.
Historically, China is not a country that suffers very many deadly earthquakes – but when they come – if they are BIG – it is customary to look for the meaning.
And so the question: Is today’s earthquake an omen – or a meaningless random event.
Well, let’s look at some Chinese history.
On July 28, 1976 – 240,000 people died in the Tangshan earthquake. Many viewed this as a harbinger for Chairman Mao – who died 44 days later – on 9.9.1976.
When it comes to numbers, there are two that Chinese are leery of – and for good reason. Those numbers are ‘4’ and ‘9.’
4 is often thought of as the number of death. 9 is seen as a number of life (picture an unborn baby – almost looks like a 9). On the other hand, 9 is also thought of as a number that completes a cycle. Hence, Mao’s death on 9.9.1976 completed a MAJOR cycle. Moreover, isn’t it odd that he died 44 days later (if you count the day of the earthquake and the day he died).
Here’s something else that is interesting:
If the numbers 4 and 9 repeat – it may spell double doom. If you’re 44 years old, for example, astute Chinese would advise you to leap a year ahead and say you’re 45.
After childhood, it is customary to never have an age that ends in ‘9.’ You’re never 49 – you’re 50.
You’re never 59 – you’re 60 – and so on.
If this sounds a bit odd – let me give you some “twilight zone” stuff to consider.
1. Martin Luther King, Jr. – assassinated on 4.4.1968.
2. Henry Aaron – number 44 – received more death threats en route to breaking Babe Ruth’s record than all other baseball players in history combined. Hit number 715 on 4.8.1974 in the 4th inning. Thank God he survived.
3. Chairman Mao – died on 9.9.1976 – in this instance view ‘9’ as the number of completion.
4. Uh-oh – this year in the U.S. we’re electing our 44th president. Wouldn’t want to be THAT person – let me tell you. Visualize the very best. Pray for the best. But don’t be surprised if all hell breaks loose.
5. In China – April 4 is a day to remember the dearly departed
6. The 2008 Olympics open this year on 08.08.08 at 8:08:08 PM. In China an ‘8’ is the most fortunate number of all. So it is not mere coincidence that they are starting the opening ceremonies with a string of 8’s.
Okay, what does all this mean. And does today’s earthquake in China contain a message for us.
I believe everything in life has a meaning – if you take the time to look. At the same time, I also believe what you picture in your mind has MORE to do with the results you and others experience in life than any other factor – and so, that is where the majority of your focus must go.
Begin and end with the elements you can control – and you may be amazed with the wonders you work in this world.
That’s the meaning of today’s earthquake. Don’t sit around and endlessly speculate on fate. Some of that is fine – but the real key to making the world a better place will be found in thinking the best and DOING the best.
That’s how all of us can truly make a difference.
Matt Furey
“History is bunk.” – Henry Ford
Aside from a pride of lions – there are two types of pride. One is essential to your success; the other a harbinger of doom.
In the positive sense of the word – pride means self-respect or dignity. You have a healthy and helpful attitude about who you are or what you’ve accomplished.
By healthy and helpful I do NOT mean a smug or gloating expression. Healthy and helpful pride is gratitude for what you’ve accomplished while realizing you are still human and therefore still prone to mistakes and failure. You realize that a very fine line separates a winning state of mind from that of the loser.
Therefore, when you succeed, you do not celebrate insanely – nor do you cop an attitude of superiority to others. This is a tough thing to do, especially if you are inundated with praise after an accomplishment of great magnitude. It is also difficult if you perform before a crowd in anyway.
If you succeed before a good number of people and praises are being sung to you from high and low – it is at that very moment that you are most vulnerable to the wrong kind of pride.
It takes exceptional character to allow praise to come your way as you smile, take it in – then, most importantly, redirect the energy. Failure to recirculate the praise dooms many whom otherwise would have gone on to succeed again and again.
One of the greatest lessons I learned from Dan Gable can be seen in the quote below:
“There is no mat space for malcontents or dissenters. One must neither celebrate insanely when he wins, nor sulk when he loses. He accepts victory professionally and humbly; he hates defeat, but makes no poor display of it.”
Yes, it’s great to let yourself feel good after a victory. It’s also important that you immediately set another goal that keeps your mind focused on the journey.
Use your previous successes as stepping stones to a brighter future. View your previous victories and the energy they contain in your mental movie theatre – but don’t for one moment think that your winning moments are YOU. They are not YOU. They are nothing but experience to be used for the positive.
The same goes with your mistakes, failures and losses. They are not YOU either. Like your victories, mistakes are lessons to help you learn and grow.
Keep in mind the three magical words uttered by Henry Ford at the beginning of today’s message: “History is bunk.”
These words will help keep you honest with your true self.
Matt Furey
“You need to finish something.”
The five words you see in quotes were said to me by my wife in the summer of 1995.
She got tired of watching me start something – get an idea for something else – drop what I was doing – start the new thing – get a new idea – start on yet another new path – then get yet another idea – and so on.
A few weeks after she said this I finished my first book.
But I didn’t stop there. Soon after I wrote my first book I created a set of three videos, then another book with a video – then another book and a set of audio tapes to go with it.
A couple months later – two more videos.
I was finishing things.
In fact, over the next eight years I finished so many things that I became prosperous in every sense of the word.
Then I backed off a bit on creating products and started doing seminars and coaching … helping others create.
Now, let me define the words “backed off.”
They mean: While coaching everyone in the creation process I started to create fewer books and course than I used to, or at the speed I once did.
Yes, I did write three newsletters each month, as well articles for magazines, as well as my daily emails, as well as my monthly CDs and DVDs.
Yet, even with the seminars, the coaching, the newsletters, emails, DVDs and CDs being cranked out each month – something was still stirring within my soul.
I felt I had done so little compared to what I’m capable of. There was so much more I wanted to write, to say, to record.
While this desire for more stirred within me – I also had to deal with the reality that I could retire if I wanted to and live a life of comfort.
I must tell you – the words “comfort” and “comfortable” are dangerous. You want to learn the art of mental, physical and spiritual relaxation – but you don’t want to learn the art of comfort. As soon as you get comfortable with what you have or what you’ve done – something inside you dies.
I can tell you, there are a lot of people who would love to write a book or create a product – but their lives are too comfortable – so they can’t get themselves to do it.
The word “maintain” is another dangerous word. Success is not about maintaining anything. It’s about continually looking for ways to make yourself better – no matter what.
And there is no better way to capture the feeling of success than finishing things you set out to do – then going back and recharging yourself by reliving those circumstances in order to program yourself for more of the same.
Finishing things takes desire, imagination and goals that get you moving.
Later this month I’ll be releasing a couple new books that I showed to members of my MasterMind last weekend. I think you’ll be in awe when you read what I’ve written. It most certainly is NOT a rehash of everything else out there.
So stay tuned.
In the interim, take a look at the Zero Resistance Living Course
Matt Furey
P.S. 10 days remain before I put on my annual fitness seminar. This one will be a total mind/body approach that you MUST go to. Only 48 hours left before enrollment is closed. Sign on NOW.
I just had lunch with my mom. She turned 81 today. Afterward we took her to Baskin-Robbins to pick up a chocolate cake with vanilla ice cream.
This is the one day each year that she will eat sweets. Not kidding. From the time I was a lad she refrained from eating chocolate and other sugary snacks – until her birthday. Then it was open season.
You might wonder how someone could be so disciplined year in and year out. Part of the answer can be found in her ability to block things out of her mind that are not in alignment with her purpose. Yes, she might open the door one day per year – but that door was sealed tight before midnight the same day.
My mother began teaching me how to block distracting thoughts when I was in grade school. And when I did as she advised, I would coast through the day without a single worry.
Later on, when I struggled to become a champion wrestler, my mother’s wisdom often came in handy. She always seemed to know how to tell a story that would change the way I thought about a situation.
In another 11 days we’ll be celebrating Mother’s Day. Start thinking now about something you can do to show your love and appreciation for the woman who helped bring you into the world.
By the way, in another 16 days, the first day of my Get Tough Fitness Seminar will begin – a seminar in which I teach the mental and physical keys to health and fitness.
My mom and dad will be there – along with Dan Gable, my college wrestling coach – and another 81-year old, Sakai Yusai – aka the Japanese Superman.
Hope you can make it. Only a couple seats remain.
Go here and enroll NOW.
Matt Furey
Last week I was talking to a friend about positive thinking – which he is a big believer in. Each day he gets up and repeats a number of positive affirmations to himself.
He says that doing these affirmations helps him a lot. He says when he affirms what he wants he gets into a positive state of mind.
I asked him for some specifics. He told me that when he gets up each day he’s in a grumpy mood – but after saying, “I feel terrific” six times with a ton of enthusiasm, that his mental state begins to go from crummy to the cream-of-the-crop.
“That’s great,” I said. “But let me ask, other than feeling good, what results are you manifesting. What are you able to accomplish when you feel good.”
This stumped the man – who then began to tell me that desire was a bad thing, the cause of all human suffering, and so on. He told me that this is something I “should know” being I’m a Zen Master.
I said: “Desire is as natural as breathing. You cannot rid yourself of desire anymore than you can rid the Universe of chi or vital energy. Anyone who tells you desire causes suffering is an idiot. Desire doesn’t and cannot cause suffering. And any attempt to rid yourself of it is yet another desire.”
“Okay,” he says, “so tell me why I feel pain and suffering when I don’t get what I want.”
“Because you’re attached to what you want. You think you MUST have it in order to be happy. You think muney makes you happy. It doesn’t and can’t. You think a new car makes you happy, it doesn’t. But if you are happy for no particular reason, then you can have all of these success trinkets and remain happy. You can desire something, bring it into being, and not be attached to it. ”
“So are you saying that my affirmations are a waste of time, that they’re wrong.”
“No, I’m not. Quite the contrary. I would, however, encourage you to learn how to put yourself into a powerful emotional state without affirmations – then when you feel terrific and tell yourself this truth – you’ll feel even better.”
And that is exactly what I reveal in the April CD going out to members of the Super Human Success Group. How to feel and be positive without trying to think or be positive.
What I reveal on this CD is so powerful you’ll feel like you received a triple dose B-12 shot.
Make sure you’re a member so you don’t miss out on this powerful message. Knowing this secret technique will amplify whatever else you’re currently doing, giving you more results much faster.
Go here and enroll now.
Packages going out this weekend. Make sure you don’t miss the deadline on this.
Matt Furey
The Marathon Monks in Japan are famous for proving their mental and spiritual power by accomplishing daunting physical tasks.
All members of this Tendai sect of Buddhist monks must do 100-straight marathons as part of their training. And from the entire group of monks, a select number are given the task of doing 1,000 marathons in seven years. Whoever finishes this feat is considered a living saint. I guess that means these marathons are no cake walk.
Since 1885, only 46 have made it. One of them, my friend, Sakai Yusai, will be speaking at my fitness seminar next month.
Recently a man wrote me and compared the running feats of a friend to Sakai Yusai. Although impressive, what the man doesn’t know is that 1,000 marathons was only PART of what this monk did.
Not only is he the only monk to do the 1,000 marathons twice – the second time finishing in six years – but he performed the incredible feat of walking for 90 days straight.
No – I did not say that he went for a walk each day for 90 Days.
What I’m saying is that he walked, without sleep, for 90 straight days. Never allowed to sit. Never allowed to lie down. The only rest was the two meals he got per day, which he had to eat while STANDING.
In addition to this, after doing 700 marathons, he did a 9-day fast with no food, no water and no sleep.
After the 1,000th marathon he did a seven-day fast before a large pit of fire. Again, no food, no water and no sleep as he placed peoples’ prayer petitions into the fire and chanted blessings. Many spontaneous healings take place when a monk like Sakai Yusai does this.
In the Western world, people tend to think of mental and spiritual power as separate from the physical. The very notion is ludicrous. I don’t believe you can rich the highest levels of mental and spiritual power without being physically active.
Martial arts masters are wonderful examples of mental and spiritual power. They do things that defy logic. They do things that the average and ordinary cannot fathom.
They also understand that what they have done can be duplicated – if the mind is willing and the flesh is strong.
If your spirit is willing but your flesh is weak – then you have no power. True power comes when your spirit is willing and your flesh is strong enough to get behind your desires and fuel them to fruition.
I put the accomplishments of Sakai Yusai head and shoulders above anything I have ever read about or witnessed before. You try walking without sleep for one day – much less 90 – and I think you’ll understand why.
This is just one of many reasons I encourage you to attend my seminar. It will change your life in a MAJOR WAY.
Matt Furey
Listen to what great athletes say when they make it to the big one and you’ll become almost psychic about who will and won’t win the championship.
This past Sunday I watched the Stanford women’s basketball team whoop Connecticut. Then I watched Tennessee eke by LSU.
Afterward I figured Stanford would win their first NCAA women’s basketball title. Afterall, they had averaged 90 points in their last two games, while Tennessee didn’t even break 50 points against LSU. Not only that, Stanford was red hot in the semi-finals while the Lady Vols looked like they came out of a freezer.
Stanford was going to win it all, I thought. No doubt about it.
But then I heard the post game interviews with Candice Wiggins of Stanford and Candace Parker of Tennessee. As soon as I heard what each player said, I changed my mind.
Pay close attention and you’ll immediately know why I reversed my thinking.
When Stanford star Candice Wiggins was interviewed after winning the semi-final round, she was thrilled to make it to the finals. That alone was a dream fulfilled. She did not speak a single word about winning the NCAA title.
Tennessee’s Candace Parker, however, said that “anything short of an NCAA championship would constitute a failure.”
Very different goals. And the specifics of your goals play a major role in how you perform.
Two nights ago I did an “energy read” of the teams in the men’s finals when Memphis was up by nine points. Even with two minutes left, upon gazing at the emotion coming off the players, I believed Kansas would pull it out. They did.
Last night I did the same sort of reading when Stanford was down by a couple points and had the rest of the game to turn it around. “They haven’t got a prayer,” I said to my wife. “Tennessee is on a mission.”
Tennessee’s defense took the high-powered eight-cylinder Stanford offense and reduced it to two cylinders.
Wiggins, normally smiling and cheerful in the midst of a big game, didn’t look too happy. Parker, on the other hand, had a Cheshire cat grin most of the night.
This “look” by the way, is one of the hallmarks of the truly great “Super Human” performers. Even in the midst of battle, elite athletes often look like they’re having a blast. When they’re in the zone, all physical and mental resistance is gone. Often you’ll be in awe of how cool, calm and collected they are.
Those who do not perform at the highest level rarely look truly comfortable in their own skin. They don’t know the peace of mind that comes with being on the journey toward a pre-determined objective. Instead, they’re hoping that the attainment of the goal will bring them happiness. It won’t. It can’t. It never does.
People wonder why champions tend to win over and over again. This is the 8th NCAA women’s basketball title for Tennessee coach Pat Summit, who is the all-time winningest coach in NCAA hoops history – and that includes both men and women coaches.
The answer lies in how you define your goals. You’d think this would be a no-brainer – but the truth is you see this mistake being made all the time, even at the highest levels of competition. All you need to do to pick a winner, most of the time, is listen to the interviews of players right after they make it into the Super Bowl, World Series or NCAA finals.
The eventual losing team has players who say their goal was to get to the finals. The winning team shows their excitement about making it to the big one – but they make it known that WINNING the championship is the main goal. Getting there is simply a stepping stone.
The greatest battles in sports take place when both teams in the finals have the same goal.
Keep this in mind as you travel through your day.
What do you want to create today. Focus on it and make it happen.
Matt Furey
P.S. May 16-18, I’ll be showing how to program “the look” into your mind and body, even while you exercise in an intense way. You’ll be in awe when you see how quickly this changes your emotional state for the entire day. A quick 5-minute workout when you feel blah can turn into 24-hours of uninterrupted bliss. Want to know more. Then go to GetTough.com and register NOW.
Two minutes are left on the clock. You’re down by nine points. And momentum is not on your side. What do you do.
Give up, give in or RISE UP.
Sports are a great metaphor for how we live our lives. They show us how we can and do make choices that lead us to a victory or a loss – and all of it is on public display in a microcosmic way.
Last night I watched the men’s NCAA championship game between Kansas and Memphis. No matter what the score, I had a strong feeling that Kansas was going to win. There was a calm aura surrounding them. No matter what, they kept their composure and focus.
Even when they were down by nine points with two minutes to go.
Memphis, on the other hand, showed a number of weaknesses in their mental game. When a play didn’t go their way, one or two players would start to whine. And whenever you see whining, you are seeing a weakness.
It didn’t surprise me then, when the Jayhawks tied the score with a 3-point shot with time almost out, forcing the game into overtime.
When the players walked to their benches to regroup, you could see Kansas was excited to have another whack at the crown while Memphis was deflated.
Kansas dominated in overtime, going on to win by seven points, 75-68.
In a post-game interview with Kansas head coach Bill Self, he was asked about his pre-game remarks to the team. Before leaving the locker room, Self thanked the team in advance for what they were about to accomplish.
Once again, this is powerful self-image psychology. He gave the team a mental picture of himself being thankful to them for making history, for accomplishing something great.
He began with the end in mind.
And the end was not victory. It was GRATITUDE for victory.
Big difference.
There is a key to making this type of gratitude work – especially with a team. If you do it wrong, you create resistance – not momentum.
I’ve seen salespeople who will send an offer and at the end write something like, “Thanking you in Advance.”
This shows the salesperson’s focus is only upon himself.
Coach Self’s remarks were the opposite. He was thankful to the TEAM – not for himself alone. He was grateful for what THEY accomplished. He was glad to be part of the victory.
I think Bill Self and the Kansas Jayhawks most deserving of the BIG SELF award.
Truth is all of us have a BIG SELF within who is guiding us to victory – if we will only listen.
Matt Furey
P.S. This May, at my Get Tough Fitness Challenge I’m going to teach a secret way to catapult yourself to success, in anything, that is so powerful you’ll feel like you quickly tied the score and won the game in overtime.
It’s Spring Break here in Florida, so I took the weekend off and watched a couple Final Four games with my son. I think the last time I watched the Final Four was when Iowa was in it – and that was about 30 years ago – so this was a definite deviation from the norm.
It turned out to be a wise choice – mostly because of what I watched on Saturday night when Kansas tore #1 ranked North Carolina apart.
Yet, it wasn’t the the athletes performance that I will remember the most. It was what Bill Self, the Kansas coach, said to his players before they took the court.
He told them they were playing a very good team – but they were also a very good team.
He told them it would be a long game, so they needed to go out there and have fun, stay relaxed and keep their focus.
Yes, in the heat of battle, he told them to remove the resistance by being relaxed. Oh, if the average person could understand the value of this. Far too many people think the key to overcoming difficulties and surmounting obstacles is to frown, complain and flex.
Not so.
It’s to keep moving forward – but in a spirit of calm and relaxation – expecting all will go well.
Coach Self ended his pre-game talk with a quote from Vince Lombardi -on expectations. He told the team that they would get what they expected.
Then he paused before delivering a line I will never forget:
“I expect a BIG CELEBRATION in this locker room in about two and a half hours.”
Coach Self did not talk about winning. He did not talk about beating the other team. ALL he talked about was “expecting a big celebration.”
He began with the end in mind.
And the end was NOT winning – it was the joy and excitement to be felt AFTER winning.
Coach Self gave the team a vision that aroused their emotions and focused them on what they really wanted – the FEELING of victory – the FEELING of having given their best.
Kansas led 38-10 at one point in the first half. A 28-point lead on the nation’s number one team.
In the second half their lead was chopped considerably as the Tar Heels fought valiantly. But after North Carolina fought so hard to catch up, they had nothing left and Kansas flew past them again – winning by 18 points.
As you go through your day, ask yourself this question, “What do you expect to be celebrating about at the end of today.”
Begin with the end in mind and watch the end come to you in record time.
Matt Furey
P.S. To learn the deeper mysteries about HOW to visualize the celebration and make it happen, make sure you’re part of the Super Human Success Group. Give it a one-month test along with the Trump Card.
P.P.S. And to really, really learn the art of celebration – come to the most incredible mind-fitness seminar ever held – right here in Tampa.
Hello and welcome to Psycho-Cybernetics.com - the official site for the original (and expanded) teachings of Dr. Maxwell Maltz, author of the 35 million copy best-seller, Psycho-Cybernetics. I’m Matt Furey, author of the best-selling Nightingale-Conant audio book, Maxwell Maltz’ Theatre of the Mind.
When you subscribe to our Psycho-Cybernetics emails, I will immediately send you an email containing a FREE PDF ($100 value) of my Theatre of the Mind Masters Newsletter called Defeating the Failure Mechanism, which also features a Dr. Maltz piece, When Positive Thinking Doesn't Work. This highly regarded newsletter will show you how to apply the suggestions contained within it into your own life… and make changes for the BETTER!
Best,
Matt Furey
President, Psycho-Cybernetics Foundation
