Transformation Begins With What We See and Hear

So many of us wish to transform our lives and live our dreams. But despite our best intentions, many of us will also trip ourselves up along the way. Why? Because we haven’t been intentional around two crucial aspects: what we see, and what we hear.

By deliberately choosing what we see, we influence our mindset and, by extension, our reality. Similarly, what we choose to hear regularly conditions our minds to believe and act on those messages. Consider the following:

• 82% of small business owners who used vision boards from the beginning succeeded in more than half of their stated goals (TD Bank, 2016).
• Children who frequently watched violent TV shows between the ages of 6 and 10 were more likely to exhibit aggressive and violent behaviors in young adulthood (Huesmann, L. R., Moise-Titus, J., Podolski, C.-L., & Eron, L. D., 2003).

Simply put, what goes into our minds often comes out as life experiences — some good, some not so good.

By developing the practice of intentional attention around what we see and hear, we set the stage for the next steps in our leadership evolution, enabling our goals, dreams, and visions to become reality, and driving our journey toward personal and professional success.

As an Executive Coach who has worked with CEOs and other high-performing professionals around the world, I can assure you that being intentional about what you see and what you hear is essential for making powerful shifts in your life. In fact, they are the first two steps — and potentially the two most important ones — of my SHIFTS process model:

1. See: You are the sum of what you repeatedly See.
2. Hear: You are the sum of what you repeatedly Hear.
3. Insight: Your insights and feelings anchor your beliefs about yourself and the world.
4. Formulate: Your belief system Formulates your decisions and creates habits.
5. Transform: Your decisions Transform your actions for making those big, bold moves!
6. Succeed: Your actions lead to Success.

I have written about this model at length in my book “SHIFTS: 6 Steps to Transform Your Mindset and Elevate Your Leadership,” and I teach it to students at my Daystar Leadership Academy in Lagos, Nigeria. I’m proud to say that more than 52,000 alumni have graduated from the DLA since its inception in 2002. I truly believe that if the SHIFTS model was taught in more educational institutions, many more of our young people would be empowered to make stronger choices, pursue more positive paths, and set more ambitious goals — not only for themselves as individuals, but for their communities, countries, and our planet as well.

At the heart of the SHIFTS model is self-leadership and self-mastery. You cannot lead others until you desire to make SHIFTS in your own mind and choose to lead yourself first. And the first step towards doing so is becoming intentional about what you consume visually and auditorily.

So that begs the question: What will you consume? Will you read a book by a successful entrepreneur, civic leader, teacher, or prophet? Or will you doom scroll on social media? Will you listen to music that inspires your soul? Or will you tune into the latest celebrity gossip? What we consume makes us who we are. Or, as I once saw written on a banner at a booksellers convention: What goes into a mind comes out in a life.

Ideas for Curating What You See and Hear

Books: When I set out to transform my life from the inside out, books became an invaluable part of my journey — and they still are! Books are one of humanity’s greatest inventions — if not the best — as they provide a hand-held vehicle for absorbing others’ wisdom. A book is an easy way to transport you directly into the mindset of some of history’s greatest statesmen, philosophers, entrepreneurs, athletes, and academics. Books, therefore — whether physical copies, e-books, or audiobooks — are always a wise investment.

And let’s not be mistaken: Books are not simply for beginners — they’re for the über-successful as well! Billionaire Warren Buffett spends about 80% of his day reading: “Read 500 pages like this every day. “That’s how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest”.

TV & Films: Movies shape our minds, whether we realize it or not! My daughter once had a friend from overseas who spoke English fluently. When asked how she became so proficient, she stated that she had become adept by watching American movies! Similarly, a study by de Leeuw, R. N. H. & van der Laan, C. A. (2018) showed that when children were shown a film clip in which the main character helped another character, the children modeled the behavior.

How are the movies, TV programs, and documentaries you’re watching influencing you? Which ones have caused stress, anxiety, or questionable behavior? Which ones cause your heart to soar and expand your ability to feel hope, love and gratitude?

Music: The South Sudanese-Canadian actor, rapper, singer, and activist Emmanuel Jal once said: “Music — it’s the only thing that can enter your system, your mind, your heart, without your permission.” We each know that music can both make us feel happier, as well as incite dark and aggressive thoughts. Based on where you want to go in life, which music will you use as your mental and emotional fuel?

Take some time to write down your life’s playlist. Some of our favorite songs and pieces of music come and go with time, but others have longevity in our lives. Which songs shift your mood when you’re down? What music reminds you of your best attributes?

Education: Whether formally pursuing a BA, MBA or PhD, or attending an online or in-person conference or seminar, education is a powerful transformation platform. It’s no surprise that organizations such as UNICEF and UNESCO conclude that education is a key strategy for reducing global poverty. It is important, therefore, to dedicate oneself to becoming a lifelong learner. But when making SHIFTS in our lives, of greater importance than education is the practical application of what we learn. Yes, knowledge is power, but competency is crucial.

Association: The people we associate with — the ones in our immediate orbit — influence us the most. Why? Because they’re the ones we see and hear the most! The company we keep will propel our SHIFTS or sink them — it’s that simple. Of course, we should never callously sever bonds, but at the same time, elevating our leadership and making SHIFTS in our lives sometimes calls for making difficult choices. Always remember the following quote, often attributed to motivational speaker Jim Rohn: “You are the average of the five people you spend the most time with.”

Exposure: The human mind is much like a camera — your eyes the aperture, your memory the film. My family and I once took a trip to Athens and Milan, knowing that what we were to see and hear in those beautiful places was to stay with us and SHIFT our minds for a lifetime. Depending on your circumstances, consider investing in inspiring locales, regions, and environments — even if they’re only a few miles away. Doing so helps create a vision of what is yet to come.

Written by Sam Adeyemi.
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