"Your time is limited, don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma - which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of other's opinions drown out your own inner voice. And most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become."

- Steve Jobs

1. The concept of time

"THE CLOCK IS TICKING Our future is slipping away, moment by moment. One day, the final clock will strike and our time will be up. But when will we start to truly appreciate the gift of life? When will we awaken to the fact that time is running out? We're so busy with this and that, we're so busy that we don't even know why we're so busy. We have no time for anything or anyone, not even for ourselves. We've lost sight of what life is all about.

So I invite you to hit pause for a moment, and reflect. How much of your precious time this week have you wasted on things that don't really matter? How much of it have you spent worrying about things that never came to pass? How much of it have you spent doing things that won't bring you any closer to what you truly want?

What do you spend the majority of your time on? Take a moment to think about it. What do you spend the bulk of your life doing? One day, there will be no more time to pursue the things you've always dreamed of. No more time to say the things you've always wanted to say. So don't wait. Act now. Decide now that you and only you get to steer the course of your life. That, my friend, is the essence of personal mastery.

In this game of life, time is our opponent, and so far, time has always won. We wait until the last possible moment to take action. We procrastinate until the deadline is upon us, and then we scramble to get the job done just in time. But with each deadline, our time is running out. It's only when we're face-to-face with death that we realize our life has passed us by without truly living it.

But it's not too late. We're here now, and every decision we make, every choice we take today will shape our future. We still have time to make our dreams come true, to achieve our goals, and to get the most out of ourselves. So don't limit yourself. Don't give up before you've even begun. You don't need to know the how, just the where. What's your destination? What's on your bucket list? Money, happiness, personal growth? More time for yourself, doing what you love? Make your dreams a reality and unlock your full potential.

A vital side-note: time is a construction of the mind, a perception created by you as human, and it might not even exist. It is a story we tell each other, to make sense of the world around us. This is known as an institution, a story, and stories often dictate our life (like money is a story). If we let it. The notion of time loses it relevancy if you fully connect more to your present, and be fully aware of the now. It allows you to open up your senses, focus and give your all in the only ‘time’ that matters: now. But, more about that in later chapters :-)

Let’s dig in a bit more in the notion of the mind, stories and the importance of choices.

Your mindset, your choices, your story

MINDSET Your mindset is your way of thinking. And that way of thinking determines how you live. Whether you are happy and successful or not, how you treat others and yourself, how you treat with your feelings and whether you are living life the way you want it to be. You behavior is therefore a direct result of your mindset. Your mindset determines your vision of the world around you and of yourself, your self-image. At I will use countless examples and my own experiences give you insight into your way of thinking in this program. How it is originated and which invisible blockages you can now avoid prevent you from living your best life. Do you want something on improve yourself, your behavior and the quality of your daily life? Then it is necessary to change your mindset and your beliefs change.

THOUGHTS, OPINIONS AND BEHAVIOR

It is important that you are aware of your thoughts and of it fact that you are the cause of that mental activity. Realize you then that you give meaning with your intelligent brain to every thought and that it gives you a certain feeling. Also each judgment you have is the result of the meaning you give to it a thought. Now that you're reading this or listening to me, you'll get something out of it find, you have an opinion. You agree or not. Where does that opinion come from? Over the years, and during my research for my book Master Your Mindset, it became clear to me how the way we thinking occurs. It is the result of our perception and our perception is not an objective representation of reality. Not pure, but colored. It's your reality. These are topics that we will cover in subsequent lessons.

“You believe in your own story. That story is your reality. And that reality determines your vision on the world and the results that you achieve.”

WHAT'S YOUR STORY?

Your conditioning, your story, is a collection of beliefs. Your conditioning is your personal operating system. It is the map for your life. But if you have the wrong map (roadmap) you will never get where you want to be. So what does your card look like? And is the information on your card correct? Is your roadmap up to date? to get where you want to be? Change your beliefs (belief) and your existence will change. People live according to patterns. And those patterns have emerged. How?

WHAT THOUGHTS CHECK YOUR MINDSET?

There are certain common thoughts that haunt us a lot occupy. A large part of your energy then goes to this one thoughts. By giving that attention and meaning, you grow turn those thoughts into emotions which then turn into your behavior determine. That emotion can lead to tension, stress, uncertainty, turmoil, etc. The learning process of being positive (not just positive thinking) begins with the recognition of destructive thoughts. Once you are aware of the habit of thinking thoughts that lead to negative emotions, you can change them through positive ones replace thoughts.

“The emotional meaning you give to a thought, determines your behavior and your behavior determines the results you achieve.”

WHAT MAKES THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN PEOPLE? A. How we think B. What meaning we give to thoughts, situations and experiences C. What action we take

No matter how different we all seem to be, in essence we have we have the same basic needs. Tony Robbins names the six needs that every person has as follows:

1. Certainty, because we want a carefree existence.

2. Variety, because too much certainty becomes boring.

3. Consideration, because we want to be seen and heard.

4. Love and connection, because otherwise we feel lonely.

5. Growth, because development leads to satisfaction and happiness.

6. A contribution to others or society, because we want be of significance.

Your behavior and the choices you make are directly related to these six needs and to your personal values. Which needs weigh more heavily is different for everyone. That's why It's extremely important that you keep those personal values for yourself very clear. And that you also understand why exactly that one values are so important to you.

If you combine those values with the six basic needs, and you add your limiting beliefs, which will be covered later more, then you will be able to explain a large part of your behavior. Then you will understand how your mindset came about and that you have the key that gives access to your most beautiful life.

EVERY CHOICE YOU MAKE... Most people can't choose easily; the more choice, the harder it gets. The more there is on the menu a restaurant, the more difficult it is to choose. Doubters usually don't dare to make decisions. By When waiting, opportunities often pass by and in many cases the doubter ends up making the 'wrong' choice, which later leads to regret. People who go through life successfully usually choose quickly. She are confident, make choices quickly and usually stick to them. They will not doubt whether it is the right choice. So choose quickly, Don't hesitate and stick to your choice. Or you must be demonstrable and with certainty that it was not the right choice, or maybe it is circumstances changed; in that case you can rigorously do it turn around and choose a different course. Change starts with a decision. If you do something to yourself or to want to change your current existence, it starts with the decision that to do. Above all, you have to learn to ask yourself good questions. By asking good questions you gain clarity. By brightness you get insight. Through insight, fear and uncertainty disappear and you get more self-confidence. If you have confidence, you dare to make decisions. And every decision you make determines the course of your life. That's why I often say: ' With every decision you make now you determine your own future.”

HOW ARE YOU? WHERE ARE YOU NOW? Do you consider yourself vital at the moment? Do you live healthy? Or are you too fat and do you have too little energy? Are you in control of your emotions or are you lived by your emotions? Do you have a lot of negative thoughts? Are you easily bothered by criticism from others? Do you always have too much to do and not enough time? Are you happy in your relationship? Do you feel are you regularly lonely or do you experience a strong connection? How are your social contacts? How are you doing financially? Have do you ever worry about money? Do you have enough savings? Do you think that you earn enough? Or do you just need more money? Gives you do you work satisfaction? Do you take enough time to relax and to enjoy? Do you take enough rest for yourself every day or do you have to you all kinds of things and do you regularly feel stressed? And how busy are you with spiritual growth?

3. It’s all about your focus

The Pyramid of Life Art I also refer to these elements in our lives as the Pyramid of Life Art. An exceptional, grand, fantastic, successful, and happy life is the result of a determined commitment to constantly focus on improving these ten elements of life. All elements are important in achieving a balanced life. Then there is peace and harmony within yourself and that offers the perspective to further develop in a happy state of awareness.

The foundation is laid by vitality (life force) and how we deal with our emotions. Good health and a high energy level are the basis for a positive mental attitude and positive emotions. As we climb up the pyramid, you see that higher levels can only come into their own when the underlying levels are stable. In order to deliver optimal performance, each level must be stable and balanced. If this is not the case, it can have consequences for each level. For example, if you have no control over your energy level, you do not feel vital and you will have more emotional fluctuations. This makes you more insecure and distracted. This leads to restless thoughts that result in stress. Without realizing it, a lot of valuable time is lost because you worry and worry. Your negative attitude can be detrimental to your relationship and social interaction, can have business and financial consequences, and offers no room for relaxation. This situation creates a negative mindset that is reflected in daily reality. When you have trouble communicating and can't get along with others smoothly, that will have negative consequences in collaboration with colleagues, superiors, and customers. If you can't handle your time efficiently, you'll notice that in your work, in your social life, and you usually have too little time for relaxation. In short, you experience your existence as confusing or chaotic. Relaxation is not possible because you have worrying thoughts that affect your emotions. When a number of elements are not in order, you will almost always have problems in your daily life, sometimes with far-reaching consequences.

You can also see the elements of the Pyramid of Life Art as the spokes of your life wheel. If one spoke breaks, repair it directly before a second one breaks, causing the wheel to lose stability.

For each element of the Pyramid of Life Art, you can ask yourself what you would like to improve. And ask yourself at each element: what do I really want? What do I want with my health? What do I want with my relationship? What do I want financially? What do I want with my work or my business? How do I want to allocate my time? How do I want to develop myself spiritually? Don't take this too easily. Focus your attention on that one thing...

4. Where Your Mind Is, There You Are

Sometimes you feel on top of the world, while other times you're a mere shadow of your former self. What determines your state of being? How can you feel powerful, confident, happy, lively, and calm one moment, and then lost, unhappy, and overwhelmed the next?

Emotions shape how you feel, so they largely determine the quality of your being. An emotion is different from a feeling, although they are closely related. Feelings come from intuition, they can come from a sudden inspiration. You can "feel" that something is about to happen, without being able to explain it. You can sometimes feel if someone is pure and sincere, or not, without being able to factually prove it. Feelings of love, gratitude, something you can feel without being able to explain or trace it back to certain thoughts. These types of feelings come from somewhere or are created. Emotions are the result of the meaning we consciously and unconsciously assign to thoughts and events. That's my vision and explanation.

Therefore, emotions largely determine how we feel. Where your attention is, your dominant emotions form. What state of consciousness are you in? If you're in a negative state of consciousness, you make the wrong choices and do the wrong things (low energy, wrong focus, easily distracted, you focus on the negative, susceptible to fear and doubt).

In a negative state of being, you are more likely to worry, or be afraid of something. You regret things, you're angry, sad, or disappointed. "If only I had done this, then that..." "If only" doesn't exist. You didn't do it that way, so staying stuck in "how it could have been" is a complete waste of time. It only brings you more negative emotions and feelings.

Past and future are concepts in our thinking mind. They do not actually exist. They are memories or projections and they are always a result of your thoughts at this moment in the present. You cannot change the past. You can only change how you deal with your past, the facts are unchangeable. The future is a result of what you think, decide, and do today. So there is only: Now. Live Now.

PAST Sadness Anger Accusations Regret Pain

NOW Awareness Clarity Focus Happiness Trust

FUTURE Fear Worry Doubt Insecurity Unrest

How can I apply this in my life today?

1. What are you currently spending the majority of your time on?

2. What would you like to spend more time doing? And why aren't you doing it now?

3. What would you like to spend less time doing?

4. How much more time would you like and for what purpose?

5. What concrete steps are you going to take to better manage your time?

“In this game of life, time is our opponent, and so far, time has always won."

THE QUALITY OF YOUR LIFE What grade is the quality of your life getting right now? Honestly rate each element from 1 to 10 right now and where you are want to stand in a year:

1. HEALTH AND VITALITY __ __

2. DEALING WITH EMOTIONS __ __

3. COMMUNICATION SKILL __ __

4. TIME MANAGEMENT __ __

5. FINANCIAL __ __

6. LOVE AND RELATIONSHIP __ __

7. WORK (OR STUDY) __ __

8. YOUR SOCIAL LIFE __ __

9. RELAXATION __ __

10. SELF-DEVELOPMENT __ __

Which five elements do you want to improve? Put the most important at number 1.

CONNECTING THE DOTS What choices have led you to where you are now? Can you recognize a pattern in your life (behaviour/choices)? Write down some key moments and decisions that set the course of your life