Imprint The Blueprint

Arnold Schwarzenegger has received a beating in the news over the past year. His ‘mistake’ with the hotel maid was national news, and he was shunned mercilessly by the media for his actions.

Forget this latest soap opera. Arnold had a lapse in willpower… pointing fingers at the fallen angel will distract you from your own faults for a few minutes at most.

Let’s focus on the big picture.

When Arnold was a clild in an unknown town in Austria he trained himself into a world-champion bodybuilder. THEN he went on to become a world famous actor. THEN he went on to become a successful politician in high office.

When Arnold was a young boy, he read a magazine article about Reg Park. (Reg was a top Mr. Universe competitor during the 50’s and the 60’s.)

The article was titled “How Mr. Universe Became Hercules”. It contained a full story of everything Reg had done to become the most muscular man in the world. It was the plan Arnold needed to follow.

We all know that Arnold succeeded in following the plan through to fruition.

–==–

Arnold said that becoming the world champion gave him a mental ‘blueprint’ that he was able to apply to every other aspect of his life.

When he wanted to become an actor, critics told him that his accent would hold him back forever. Arnold had learned, however, that hard work in the gym paid off. By applying this same persistence towards working on his accent, his iconic “I’ll be back” is one of the most recognized movie quotes of all time.

When he wanted to go into politics, everyone told him that aiming directly towards the governorship was too bold. His family and friends had said he was too bold for wanting to be a world champion when he was 16, so he knew to ignore the naysayers.

Arnold exploded into two entirely new careers equipped with a mental blueprint for success. When he achieved his goal of becoming a world champion, he imprinted those actions and thoughts into his mind.

His unending belief in his own abilities solidified.

His disposition to ‘work your butt off’ lodged itself deeper into his neural networks.

His ability to focus towards a single vision coalesced between his ears.

He ‘imprinted’ these thoughts and actions into his being, and was able to apply these tools towards his two future careers in movies and politics.

The tactics and strategies for success in film and politics are different than those required for bodybuilding, but the same underlying blueprint is suitable to both of them.

–==–

Are there any areas of your life where you have been successful?

Are there any areas of your childhood where victory seemed impossible, but you kept pushing until you succeeded?

Was there a challenging piano song that you initially thought you would never be able to play, but mastered with practice? Did you fail your driver’s test at 16, but now maneuver a vehicle into a parallel parking spot with ease?

Victories like these from your own life are not as grandiose as Arnold Schwarzenegger’s zero-to-champion story, but they can still reveal a blueprint that you can use to overcome the challenges you face today.

We all have victories from our past that we can recollect on for motivation, strategy, and ideas in a current situation.

Think over some of your best moments. Are there any lessons that you should add to your mental blueprint?