Jack Black – Leadership Development – Personal Effectiveness

This blog post will be particularly useful for those who have recently done a course with us (now owners of their new home, The House On The Right Bank) and all those who are looking forward to the up and coming Dublin Event, The Best of MindStore. This mini workshop and the unfolding process will be useful to everyone else too, whether you get involved as an individual, family or business team.

Read it through then seriously think of making an appointment with yourself. Find the space and time so that you can do it properly, perhaps you should arrange to book an hour in your schedule to complete it. 

So here’s what to do:

Take an A4 sheet of paper and take a pen or pencil and create 3 equal columns down the page.  Then create 11 equal rows across the page, head up the first column: “TOP ACHIEVEMENTS” in the top row. Now take your time to look back over your life and identify your top ten achievements.  Make sure you consider your family and relationships, career, goals achieved, education, recreation etc, etc. Write them into the boxes in that first column.

Now having identified 10 (or if you have less than this then that’s okay) head up column 2 with: “WHY IS IT IMPORTANT TO ME” then in the column below, answer each in turn. As you consider the question, go back in your mind to that actual time and have the desire to remember where you were and what happened and how you felt about it. Think too about the benefits that came to you when that particular achievement came about?

Finally head column 3: “HOW CAN THIS ASSIST ME AT THIS TIME IN MY LIFE” and fill in each of the remaining boxes in column 3.

I will take you all through part 2 of this process next week. For those who have experienced MindStore before, you will know that these 10 achievements will morph into powerful features in your Central Hallway and by working through this exercise, you can improve on what you’ve already created.

For first timers you will be preparing in a fairly profound way by following these four blogs ahead of your course in Dublin on Saturday 23 June. (This preparation  is not essential but will be to your advantage).

WARNING: The Best of MindStore in Dublin has the potential to seriously change your life for the better and I can’t wait to present the new and updated material.

 CLICK HERE TO BOOK ON TODAY

If you have any questions relating to the workshop or The Best of MindStore with Jack Black, feel free to drop us an email to info@mindstore.com

The other day Stephen sent me a copy of a piece in Sundays Telegraph Magazine, perhaps you read it too?

The basis of the article is that recent discoveries from scientists back up the approaches that we take in MindStore. In particular there has been a discovery of a part of the brain that develops after childhood that in effect inhibits us from “letting go and unleashing our creativity”

All of us apparently possess a vast reservoir of untapped creativity. The article quotes Picasso “Every child is an artist; the problem is how to remain one once we grow up.” It turns out that this recent research proves Picasso right. The final part of the brain to develop actually inhibits our creativity. It helps explain the effortless creativity of young children before their brains mature and the sensors of inhibition are established.

It seems that in order to be better problem solvers and unleash our creativity, we need to learn to inhibit our inhibitions. If Picasso was still with us we could show him how, and even the scientists are now able to prove to him exactly why MindStore works.

The article has an insert that reads as follows:

How to have a Eureka Moment

Take a break

Why did Archimedes have his breakthrough in the bath? Moments of insight are always proceeded by a steady rhythm of Alpha waves (induced by relaxing activities) from the brains right hemisphere.

Cheer Up

Studies show happy people solve 25% more “insight” puzzles than unhappy ones. Even fleeting moments of delight can prompt more epiphanies

Stay In Bed

Shortly after wakening is ideal for insights as the drowsy brain is unwound and open to unconventional ideas.

Ditch the Drugs

Stimulants such as caffeine increase our attention (WH Auden edited his poetry for hours, high on Benzedrine) but make epiphanies less likely as they shift attention away from the right hemisphere and its ”remote associations”

Further the main article ends with an experiment lead by the psychologist Michael Robinson apparently he randomly assigned a few hundred under graduates to two different groups. The first was given the following instructions:

“You are 7 years old and school is cancelled. You have the entire day to yourself. What would you do? Where would you go? Who would you see?”

The second was given the same instructions, with the first sentence deleted. These students didn’t imagine themselves as 7 year olds.

After writing for 10 minutes, the subjects in both groups were then given various tests of creativity, such as trying to invent alternative uses for an old car tyre. The students who imagined themselves as young kids scored far more highly, coming up with twice as many ideas as the other group. It turns out that we can recover the creativity we have lost with time. We just have to pretend we’re little kids.

By using the repeatedly tried and tested methods of MindStore, we reach into that part of the brain we worked so well as children. We even have a playground and a playhouse to enter. We have endless uninhibited fun where we can meet inner “friends” with which to imagine all manner of things. We ultimately release our innate creativity and intuition to find breakthroughs and solutions that otherwise would not emerge into our consciousness.

What you and I need to do is to purposefully inhibit our inhibitions and become childlike again to do so all you need to do is….

Find a comfortable position; Close your eyes, Take three deep breaths etc. etc. etc.

Due to an increased number of requests, we are looking to squeeze into the schedule a one day Best of MindStore Course with Jack Black in Dublin before the summer. The 23 June is working for us, so if we organise this event will you be able to attend and/or will you be sending family, colleagues or friends? All the details are included in this email: http://bit.ly/HOY9Ic

To allow us to decide whether to go ahead with this event can you please confirm immediately your intention and estimate for the number of seats you will require before Friday (20th April) to katie.mckenna@mindstore.com

Here are a few additional reminders and techniques.

Firstly please realise that by not engaging your techniques daily you enter the race of life with a self-limiting handicap. The quality of your creativity, problem solving and ultimately your performance are being stifled by the predominantly left brain faculties only.

By purposefully making visits to your House On The Right Bank (#HORB for short) you engage both sides of your brain which hugely improves your thinking on all manner of levels and therefore your day-to-day performance.

Remember to slow down the relaxation component so as to maximise the stress management aspect of our routines.

Get into the habit of programming your day. In the morning enter your “Foundation Level” or in other words the Alpha State by the usual manner. Go through the entire process to find your way to the Media Room. On the Central Screen bring up your to do list or diary of key events or meetings for the day. Take each event in turn through the following procedure. Move your eyes over to the right and find your Past Screen (Screen 2) there remind yourself of a previous time when this type of activity had gone well. This resonates with the part of your brain where the memory is stored and immediately activates your sense of belief and expectation of success again. Let the screen go blank then come back to the Central Screen. Remind yourself of today’s event then move your eyes over to the left and your Future Screen (Screen 3) run through the event going the way you want it to then freeze the end result in other words take your Photograph of The Mind. Then move further left to see the Consequences (on Screen 4) for others when you succeed. Repeat this for each critical event or meeting that day.

Always turn up early ahead of these pre-programmed events in order to find the time and a suitable place, (usually for me that is a loo), and once again get into your #HORB and re-programme by reviewing both the 3rd and 4th screens ahead of wearing your programmed cloak then onto the energising beam before a big stretch, enter the arena and perform.

Your “Well” is a very powerful technique giving you access to all manner of subtle and deep programming methods. For a start pay attention and take care with the drawing and drinking of water before entering the house. Here is a really cool thing to do. As you hold the drinking vessel up above eye level, imagine a beam of thought coming from your forehead with the intention of filling the water with the qualities held in the thought. For example: vibrant health, or clarity of thought or even as an imagined elixir for healing. To be honest the possibilities are endless. Imagine then drinking it and your entire being right down to every cell is charged with the meaning and quality now held in the liquid.

On returning to the left bank and your wide awake state, immediately and purposefully drink a glass of water with the same intention and watch its impact on you as the rest of the day unfolds.

That will do for now, more to follow, remember you can follow my tweets on Twitter @Jack_mindstore, friend me on Facebook Jack MindStore plus there’s the conference call to follow.

Keep Smiling

Jack

Now as many of you know I always start my presentations by asking the audience who they admire and why they do. Across the world, apart from local heroes, the same global giants show up time and time again. Richard Branson, Nelson Mandela, Madonna, Muhammad Ali etc. etc.

If you are attending the forthcoming Best of MindStore Event in Dublin, the following will prepare you for a couple of very powerful sessions and provide you with tools and techniques for personal empowerment and performance improvement. If you are not attending, you will still benefit from this workshop.

Consider if you will that I could arrange for you to have three or four coaches to regularly assist you over the coming years. Let’s just say I could arrange that on your behalf with anyone, no matter their status or current location. If it were really happening who would you choose to work with and how could you begin to benefit?

Now in this imagined little game your “inner coaches” will want to play their part and will be 100% committed to encouraging and supporting you to succeed at anything and everything you apply yourself to.

So take 5 minutes to identify three or four outstanding individuals from any field. You could select them from any number of backgrounds. For example: the stage, the sports field from the world of business, perhaps someone you already know personally, even someone from history or a character from a film or novel. Make sure that you choose at least one from the opposite sex from yourself.

Having done that, now take 10 minutes to identify the specific characteristics that each in turn have and that inspire you. Think clearly about the characteristics they have that you would love to possess, either temporarily for an up and coming event or permanently for use anytime in the future. Having the intention to possess and demonstrate their character traits and applying them where and when necessary is easier than you think.

On the up and coming course, participants will be introduced to and will learn how to use the powerful MindStore tools and techniques. As the day unfolds they will construct in their minds a house by a riverbank, and within the rooms of the house the tools and techniques are found.

There are two rooms in “The House on the Right Bank” that are enhanced by preparing with this workshop; they are the Den and the Cloakroom. These rooms accommodate advanced and indeed our most powerful performance enhancing tools and techniques ever provided on a basic programme.

If you have done any of the courses with me before, then you have been introduced to some of these extraordinary techniques and have met your coaching team in other guises. For example: sitting at the table in the café in the village on The Island, or in the Boardroom of the original course, or in your favorite place in more recent versions.

The serious consideration and intentional application of these ideas will have a profound impact in the future on all manner of situations and outcomes in your life.

I genuinely can’t wait to introduce these rooms in the Mental Architecture of the course as it unfolds and the range of possibilities associated with them on the forthcoming Dublin Event.

If you are unable to attend this time and have attended a previous MindStore course then you know how to engage with these intuitive and creative methods of finding better solutions and ideas each and every day.

Jack will present The Best of MindStore in the Stillorgan Park Hotel, Dublin on Saturday 23 June. Discounts are available to members, students and groups. For more info and booking CLICK HERE

I recently received an inspiring message from a MindStore member on Facebook. Hazel Markou was introduced to MindStore through a friend and after attending a course in London she has been using her toolset to help with all aspects of her life including a return to education, study and passing important examinations. Something she has not done for many years.

I was so inspired by Hazels message and the progress she has made that I set up a call with her. I have recorded our conversation to share with you.

You can download and listen to it here: http://bit.ly/A6cGF2 ( please copy and paste into your web browser and allow time for the file to download)

MindStore Works, it worked for Hazel and it can work for you too! Our next open course The Best of MindStore takes place in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Saturday 3 March for more information and booking details CLICK HERE

This third little workshop will be particularly useful for those who have recently attended a course with us (now owners of their new home, The House on the Right Bank) and all those who are looking forward to the up and coming Dublin Event, The Best of MindStore. This mini workshop and the unfolding process will be useful to everyone else too, whether you get involved as an individual, family or business team.

Read it through then seriously think of making an appointment with yourself. Find the space and time so that you can do it properly, perhaps you should arrange to book 30 minutes in your schedule to complete it.

So here’s what to do:

Consider the following: When I facilitated audiences through the unique personal discovery process that was “The Island” I got them to consider what we were as humans at our core. From across the room folks would offer “Light, Vibration, Goodness, Hope, Belief, Faith, Love, etc, etc. I then had participants write out a statement “At my core I am ……………”, they completed the rest. We then considered how we are affected by being in tune or out of tune with our core before enjoying a rather dramatic yet poignant visualization on a beach located in a secluded bay on The Island.

Now for the purpose of our workshop this week ask yourself – What are my Core values? What is really important to me in how I behave and live my life and how I would prefer others to behave and live theirs? Here are some suggestions (though not in any way complete) that might help you focus. Use them to stimulate you to write out a brainstorm of key values that are critical for you.

Friendship, Success, Work Ethic, Loyalty, Commitment, Inner Calm, Pleasure, Community, Justice, Discipline, Continuous Improvement, Reliable, Wealth, Cooperation, Democracy, Equality, Family, Service, Health, Respect, Goodness, Purpose, Teamwork, Independence, Tolerance, Trust, Integrity, Truth.

Give yourself five minutes to identify what would be on your list.

Now having done this take a further five minutes to identify a top 5 out of your list that are absolute must haves for you without which you would be unhappy.

Create a chart on a page of A4 by drawing a box half an inch in from the edges of the sheet. Draw a line down the centre of the box creating two columns. Then divide the box into 6 equal sized rows. In the box at the top of the left column create the heading “Key Values” and in the top Right column create the heading “Why it’s important to me.” Now place your five top values in the left hand boxes then fill in why each is important to you in the right hand column. Give yourself enough time to feel you have captured the essence of each value.

I will take you all through part 4 of this process next week. For those who have experienced a recent MindStore Event you will know that these 5 Values are a critical feature in the Mental Architecture and process of the new course.

Attendees of the MindStore course in Dublin on Saturday 23 June, will be preparing in a fairly profound way by following these four blogs. (This preparation is not essential but will be to your advantage.)

The Best of MindStore with Jack Black takes place in the Stillorgan Park Hotel, Dublin on Saturday 23 June, discounts are available for members, groups and students. BOOK HERE

Now that you have identified each of your top 10 achievements, have figured out why they are important to you, and how they can benefit your life going forward, here’s what to do next:

If you have attended any of our courses before use the technique to enter into the ‘Alpha State’. Or on the other hand if you are new to all of this, or even better find yourself looking forward to your first course on the 23^rd June, then simply do the following;

Find a quiet place to sit down, make yourself comfortable and close your eyes. Then deliberately relax your body. Start at your head and work your way down to your feet.   Just tell each part of your body to relax, feel your body relax and do what you can to release any tension. Start with your head, then your neck, your shoulders, arms and hands, then your chest, your abdomen, your thighs, your calves and your feet. Now if you are a MindStore member already, simply use your past screen for this exercise, if you are new to our work just trust your imagination.

Now take each achievement in turn and relive it in your minds eye. When was it, where was it, what happened, who was involved? Imagine stepping inside yourself and actually being there, enjoying experiencing the event over again. Remind yourself of how it felt and how it would feel to be achieving this all over again. Sense the benefits that it brought to you at that time and consider how it could support and encourage you today and in the future.

Finally if you were a photographer and wanted to catch the essence of that scene and what it means for you how would you want it to look? Step back out to view a frozen image of the scene just as you actually achieve the outcome.

Do this with each achievement in turn. You can of course attempt all ten achievements in one complete sitting, or spread them out over the coming week.

Apart from the self esteem and confidence building benefits of doing this it will really prepare you for the up and coming MindStore Course if you are attending.

It will certainly be a really enjoyable way of taking time out for relaxing and dissipating your stress.

Catch you next week for part three.   

The Best of MindStore with Jack Black takes place in the Stillorgan Park Hotel, Dublin on Saturday 23 June BOOK HERE 

Mark was walking around the west end of Glasgow after a morning of hard training and happened upon a MindStore Book in a Charity Shop. “This synchronicity may have been the biggest turning point in my approach to life” Mark said. 

He then attended 2 of the MindStore course’s in the Royal Concert Hall in Glasgow and used his MindStore techniques to programme his career. He has since went on to represent Great Britain at both the World and European Championships and is currently a professional skater on the hit TV Series Dancing on Ice.

Mark is competing again this Sunday on this prime time TV show. Maybe we could all spread the word through our networks and friendships and give a fellow MindStore member not only our vote but keep our three fingers together for him.

MindStore works, it can work for you, those you care about and work with too. The New Course provides the very best and ground breaking techniques for manifesting and improving life.  Indeed it is unlikely you will find so many practical  tools that are easy to learn and at the forefront of Personal Development over one single day.

Jack will present The Best of MindStore in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Saturday 3 March.  Discounts are available for Members, Students and Groups. CLICK HERE to book on today.

You can vote for Mark during Sunday Nights Show on ITV1 at 6.45pm. You can also follow Mark on Twitter at @Mark_Hanretty

At my last gig of 2011, I had the pleasure of attending and presenting at a “Dragons Den” style final for North Lanarkshire schools.  Upper School students (15-17 year olds) in teams of no more than three from the start of term worked up serious business plans and submitted them to the organisers. There were six finalists and the standard of their business ideas and the enthusiasm in which they presented was just wonderful.

I had the privilege of having 45 minutes to prepare them for the presentations. Rather than a motivational piece, I wanted to give them tools to boost their immediate performance and tools that they can use for the rest of their life.

I have had many fantastic encounters with this age group this last year and always I have found them willing to learn, and genuinely grateful for what MindStore gives them.

I just dived in, suggesting that they must be fairly nervous or anxious as in just over an hour they would be up on their feet presenting to the Dragons. The prizes that were available were significant from Kindles for each of the team members of the top three, to large cash prizes and equipment for the schools.

They seemed genuinely surprised yet eager when I said that I could give them a tool right there and then that could get rid of the anxiety, to ensure that they gave their best possible presentation. I advised them, as I do, that the techniques would seem a little strange at first but added “extraordinary people, do extraordinary things” and that they were far from ordinary school students.

They seemed to like that while also respecting my credibility, working all around the world; over 50% of the FTSE 100 has been clients, nearly 25 years in this field and somewhere in the region of 500,000 people have been through some kind of training with us.

Unlike so many “adults” they had not one ounce of cynicism between them.  This set against the economic reality facing their age group, their optimism and hope was truly inspiring.

So first up was tapping (Thought Field Therapy). I got straight into it and before they knew it they were all humming “Happy birthday” like the best of them. As if to shame “some” of the “adults” who have attended MindStore for Business Courses there was no sniggering, just a wanting to know they were tapping in the right place and getting it correct.

We did four rounds of the Anxiety Algorithm coming down from 10 to 1, as they fed back how their anxiety just melted away. Next, the MindStore Relaxation exercise, a screen for mental rehearsal and programming their Goal. Again, no hesitation, just a willingness to have a go.

In front of their teachers, their peers and fellow competitors, they closed their eyes and took the three deep breaths. It was easy to see that they were enjoying it as the stress on each of their faces quickly dissolved. I pushed the boat out and gave them a version of “The Cloak” and the “Inner Coaches” combined into one.

Forty five minutes later, they were ready, willing and able, and when each of them got up on the stage, they did their school, their parents and themselves proud.

As if it were meant to be, I was immediately approached by a teacher when my coaching session was over.  She explained that she had changed local authority over the summer, she was now with her new school students at the event and she was really enjoying her new job. She then told me that she had brought the entire Fifth Year (16-17 year olds) from her previous school, to the open “Prepare for Exams Day” that I did for Glasgow Schools back in March. The city’s schools took over the Royal Concert Hall and with the support of Glasgow City Council and sponsorship of local businesses; senior pupils were transported in from all over Glasgow.

It was an amazing day, and one of the best experiences of my life, to have nearly 2000 teenagers listen and learn for an entire day was just awesome. The teacher explained that her students then had the previous year been the worst performing Fourth Year in the history of the school. She said after the event they had all agreed to practise the techniques with the full support of teachers in the run up to their formal examinations. In addition, the teachers had agreed to create the space for pre-programming on each of the exam days. She proudly informed me that group of students became the best ever Fifth Year in the school’s history. They all did exceptionally well in all of their subjects. We had already learned that the overall results were the best in the city’s history but to hear it first hand from a dedicated and inspiring teacher quite simply made my year.

She gave me the confidence to tease the regions Director of Education and the leading Politicians who were in attendance. I did a short motivational piece to open the formal event and mentioned the Glasgow Exam Day and offered to do the same for them.

I started my career working with this age group for ten years in an area of intense deprivation. To be able to still find a rapport with them all these years later was genuinely surprising and inspiring. They face an uncertain future and if we can arm this age group with the best tools and techniques it’s now clear to me that they can go on and shine.

I also realise that all of us face a rather challenging and entirely unique immediate future. Economics and Politics aside, the year ahead does seem uncertain. The fact that at MindStore we believe that “thoughts are things” makes it more than concerning that “the 2012” thing is everywhere in popular consciousness.

Perhaps like never before, our tools and techniques are going to be necessary in the coming year. If any of the imagined disasters come, then “survivors” will definitely need them. If all we face is continued disruptive economic conditions then there will be a type of “survival of the fittest” reality playing out. If these tools work so easily for school students without them experiencing yet adult life, how much more would they work in the open hearts and minds of you and your colleagues. Surely if the “adults” could surrender their ego to learn too, and get their pride out of the way to practise and use the tools, then it’s clear the tools and techniques will bring the best out of everyone who chooses to use them. Arguably now is the time we need them most.

Yesterday I also had the privilege of spending the entire day with two hundred and fifty fifth year school students preparing them for their prelims. I had the same response as before. I had the full support of the Head Teacher and his team of committed teachers and the overwhelming enthusiasm go the young people.

I am now seriously looking to find the space to record all of this material and make it available to download for all students.

I will do all I can this year to help keep you on track with your tools and techniques through reminders and support with the use of social media and courses.

Jack Black will present The Best of MindStore in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Saturday 3 March 2012. ** Early Bird offer ends 22 Jan 2012**
High School Students are welcome to attend so long as they are accompanied by an adult.

CLICK HERE For more details and booking

Follow Jack on Twitter 
Friend Jack on Facebook
Connect on LinkedIn

Goal Setting Workshop 3

Obviously getting into a rhythm early on and sticking with it is very important. It’s also worth accepting that the vibe right round the world at this time is similar. There are millions of folks with the intention of making personal change for the better so take advantage and tune that powerful collective energy.

Having identified your goals, you can get started, and if not just go back over my two previous Blog posts and catch up. There is plenty of time, and whatever you do don’t beat yourself up for not having started already, just join in now.

With MindStore we have our system that has been proven over twenty years, with hundreds of thousands of folks using it, that it works in fact “It Only Works”. It is just a matter of following a few steps every day and letting the process work on you.

Get disciplined to get up each morning a little bit earlier than before, so that you can use the techniques. First thing to do is to have a look at your seven goals preferably in your Night Book or in the notebook version. Then enter the “Alpha State” and programme your seven by running each goal through on your Future Screen, and if you have learned it, your Consequences Screen. Once you have done this, you then Programme Your Day. This is a critical technique that we have consistently found is used daily by the members who have had the more inspiring results over the years.

To do this stay in the Alpha State then take each key event of your day ahead and Programme each on your screens. You would list each event on the Central Screen before reviewing a pervious success of a similar event on your Past Screen. Then letting it go blank remind yourself of today’s event on your Present Screen, then let it go blank too before moving to your Future Screen and Programme it going the way you want it to go. Then if you use the fourth screen consider the consequences there too.

Repeat this process for each of the key events or tasks on your to do list. This only takes a few minutes and actually takes longer to explain than it does to actually do it. You would then come out of the “Alpha State” and go about your day. As each key event comes round, depending on how important it is for you, you should build in the time to arrive early enough to be able to find somewhere private to ensure you can programme it again.

On the way through each day, remember to be on guard with your thoughts and words. Being positive is vital and protecting yourself from the negativity of others is critical too.

By the end of the day, just have a look at your Night Book again before you fall asleep.

Remember too, that you can get constant reminders and tips if you follow me on Twitter or are a friend on Facebook or have linked with me on LinkedIn.

Let’s all enjoy a wonderful 2012 and let’s ensure we achieve our goals rather than just help others to achieve theirs.

CLICK HERE to view our range of goal setting products and tools and to find out more about The Best of MindStore with Jack Black taking place in the Glasgow Royal Concert Hall on Saturday 3 March 2012