With the thoughts you’d be thinkin’
You could be another Lincoln,
If you only had a brain.
–From “The Wizard of Oz”
With a busy, multi-tasking life, it’s easy to believe your life would be better if you only had a brain . . one that’s faster, smarter, kinder, bigger. But your brain is fine—you likely just need some new tools to help it work for you, not against you.
If this sounds like you, you’ll enjoy this guest post from my friend Sarah Hathorn, who recently released her new book, “Supercharge Your Career Destiny: Control Your Life to Experience Your Dream.”
Have an interesting story to share about changing your life at work? Lessons to teach based on your own successes–and mistakes? Send us your idea for a guest blog, and you too can see your work come alive here at RedCapeRevolution.com.
The Inflatable Brain and Your Subconscious Self
by Sarah Hathorn, AICI, CIP, CPBS | Founder & CEO, Illustra Consulting
A friend of mine received a gag gift for her birthday: a cute little inflatable brain. You take it out of the box and blow it up like a kid’s swimming pool raft. Voila! You have a spare brain for those days when your real one is burnt to a crisp and just too frazzled to function.
What a grand idea, I thought. Too bad it’s a gimmick and not a game-changing modern scientific breakthrough. Then I remembered the work of Barbara L. Fredrickson, a psychology professor and at UNC-Chapel Hill. She has done extensive research into the workings of the human mind and our biological and emotional capacity to connect to other people. Fredrickson coined a term I really like: “positivity resonance,” which refers to the ability of people to be tuned in to one another in a healthy, uplifting way.
As an executive coach, I constantly emphasize that leadership presence is the key to career success. But you can’t fake it. Real 
charismatic presence comes from within, and it has to be fully supported by the right attitude. That’s why I devoted a large part of my recently published book, “Supercharge Your Career Destiny: Control Your Life to Experience Your Dream,” to the topic of executive mindset management.
Here are three of my favorite tips for exponentially enhancing your mental outlook to exude naturally dynamic leadership presence:
1. Silence the Evil Twin Within
The brain is wired to the heart, which is why emotional distress can compromise mental clarity and focus. But we also inadvertently put ourselves into a condition of stress and low self-confidence all the time by listening to voices of negativity inside our heads.
I call that the Evil Twin Within. She’s the one who has told you from childhood that you are not smart enough, lucky enough, young enough, old enough, brave enough, or confident enough. Whatever!
Let’s consciously silence that naysayer voice and replace it with uplifting, empowering messages. You’ll feel like a brand new you and become the ideal version of yourself – the one you want to project into the world.
2. Find Your Center of Gravity
Neurological and emotional interconnectivity also means that when your passions coincide with your professional brand, you gain powerfully rooted leadership presence. Work/life balance isn’t just a nice idea. It’s the secret to unlocking your full potential.
When you are grounded and centered you become much more productive. Your professional brand is uniquely your own. You resonate with others from an authentic space. They reciprocate and believe in you – and in your products, services, and business credibility.
3. Do Gray Matter Yoga
We all want a professional brand and personal image that will distinguish us in positive ways from the competition. So buckle down and do your mental exercises.
Mindset management is how you’ll get your head in the game to play in the major leagues. Put the potency of the universal laws of attraction to work for you starting now. Practice mindful visualization of your goals and dreams. Strengthen your attitude on a daily basis with affirmation, intention, and positive reframing of negative events or experiences. Invite success from the external world by opening yourself up to it within your internal world.
That’s how to optimize your individual talents and maximize your career and leadership opportunities. Then watch as the immeasurable resources of the subconscious mind magically elevate you beyond your wildest dreams. Oh, and when people ask “what’s your secret?,” just tell them that Sarah gave you a brand new inflatable brain.
Sarah Hathorn, AICI CIP, CPBS is an internationally distinguished executive coach, corporate consultant, professional speaker, and the founding CEO of her own company, Illustra Consulting. A career acceleration and leadership presence expert, Hathorn created the innovative Predictable Promotion™ System. Sarah served as a senior level executive for a Fortune 100 company for 25 years, and has 30+ years of experience mentoring high potentials for rapid career advancement and extraordinary success. Her advice has been featured in numerous publications including The New York Times, the Chicago Tribune, U.S. News & World Report and Money Magazine. Find out more about her new book, Supercharge Your Career Destiny: Control Your Life to Experience Your Dream.
(For more about Sarah’s story, listen to or read the interview I did with her here.)