Importance Of Big Thinking

During these times of extreme economic stress, it is easy to lose sight of the larger world around us—a world full of opportunity often overlooked by most people. Why is it that some people do so much better than others, when it looks like those who succeed are not as intelligent as those who do not?

The answer is complicated, involving several intertwined issues that work together. The worldview of everyone is created at birth and embellished through the years by the thoughts and actions of those around us. Whoever created us gave us instincts to protect us from the many awful dangers that have confronted humans for millions of years; the result is often extreme reluctance to embark into the strange waters surrounding anything new. These native instincts are continuously strengthened by our parents, families, schools and churches. All of these combine into the culture surrounding us which further deepens the influence of our worldview. It is nearly impossible to change this primordial view of our surroundings.


An offshoot of worldview is negative thinking. This results from the protective cocoon we are born in, created from the attitude of our parents that everything may hurt us and we must be constantly on the lookout for danger in all directions.

One result of this is the attitude of friends and family when someone decides to do something different and unconventional to the culture. I mostly see this when people try to start some kind of business on their own without working for a normal employer. All those around will tell you it can’t be done, you will certainly fail, and you will lose a lot of money for nothing. They say you will be much better off getting a job you hate, working for a heartless employer, with a poor boss. When you retire they say your normal employer will take care of you with an adequate retirement. You don’t really believe that, do you?


All of this leads to the main reason some very smart people fail while less intelligent individuals succeed beyond their wildest dreams. The successful ones are thinking many times larger ideas than all the others. What makes big thinking so necessary during the current depression is the times we are in force us to think about all the little disasters happening every day and we just don’t see the big picture surrounding us where the opportunities of the future are. Not thinking big ideas builds the platform for small results in the future. Let’s try to see some ways out of this.

First, look at some things others have said about the necessity for thinking in big terms.
This quote, shortened a bit, from “A Course in Miracles” deals with one obstacle to thinking big: fear. It says, in part:

Our worst fear is not that we are inadequate; our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. You are a child of God; your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us. As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

Niccolo Machiavelli, in the 16th Century, said: Make no small plans, for they have not the power to stir men’s blood.

In other words, a small thinker can never be a great leader.

Whoopidoo! quotes some well-known people around the world and a few we will discuss here to show what some leaders say about big thinking.

Donald Trump says, I like thinking big. If you're going to be thinking anything, you might as well think big.”

This indicates he believes any thinking other than big thinking is a waste of time and energy.

Rhonda Byrne, author of The Secret, says, To attract money, you must focus on wealth. It is impossible to bring more money into your life when you are noticing you do not have enough, because that means you are thinking thoughts that you do not have enough.

This is a discussion about all the little thoughts that clutter your mind constantly. Letting these issues get into your thinking will keep you from doing anything significant. Later, we discuss some ways around these obstacles.

In Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill said: We are what we are, because of the vibrations of thought which we pick up and register, through the stimuli of our daily environment.

This indicates Mr. Hill, writing years ago, may have encountered some of the Quantum Physics ideas developed later. It has been demonstrated we all exist in a layer of light encompassing everything in the universe—we are all bombarded with billions of bits of information constantly. If we can lower some of our worldview filters once in a while, we should pick up something useful, perhaps even a big idea.

According to Brian Tracy, A major stimulant to creative thinking is focused questions. There is something about a well-worded question that often penetrates to the heart of the matter and triggers new ideas and insights.

This seems to indicate questioning yourself about a new thought has the power to stimulate serious inner actions to bring the thinking into being.

Donald Trump has something else to say about negative thinking: The worst things in history have happened when people stop thinking for themselves, especially when they allow themselves to be influenced by negative people. That’s what gives rise to dictators. Avoid that at all costs. Stop it first on a personal level, and you will have contributed to world sanity as well as your own.

Everything in this article points to the evil residing in negativity. Somehow we have to find a way to get around this, because it is everywhere.

Stuart Wilde writes a lot about metaphysics and consciousness, and he has this to say: It's not just the emotional, intellectual, and physical gaps between you and money. The real gap is always between what you think you want and what you actually want, deep down.

Several other writers discussed later believe most people want to think big, but they just cannot summon the passion and desire within to pursue a big activity and make it succeed.

Now that we have explored the nature and necessity of thinking big, we will try to find ways to become more successful with big ideas.

Amber Wright discusses The Importance of Thinking Big in Business here. He notes that people repeatedly wonder why others are successful while they aren’t. An example he uses of what happens is Rupert Murdoch and News Corp when they bought Dow Jones. Several decades ago, Dow was worth $2.6 billion to News Corp’s $3.3 billion, about the same value. At the time of the purchase, News Corp was worth $66.7 billion, but Dow had dropped to just $1.86 billion. Why? Both companies had very smart people running them, what was the difference? Wright says the Dow people concentrated on little details and defensive thinking while News Corp always looked for new ways to expand. The same way of thinking is why people have things you don’t. The Harvard business school has a phrase describing a big thought that turns out to be much larger than first thought—“BHAG” which is big, hairy, audacious goals.
Everyone has great ideas, but few bring them into being. As our discussion proceeds, we’ll see several ways to actually get going on the big thoughts.

Wolfgang von Goethe felt this was how to do it: The moment one definitely commits oneself, then Providence moves too. All sorts of things occur to help one that would never otherwise have occurred. Whatever you can do or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power and magic to it.

In other words, take quick, big, decisive action on your great idea—maybe it will take off.

In an article here Andrew Smith emphasizes the importance of the big picture, especially now. Along with many other writers we’ll talk about, he says, “Making knee-jerk reactions to economic fears may cause you to shoot yourself in the foot.” This is a reference to all the trivial little concerns that are always present around any situation. It’s the same idea mentioned above as to how News Corp vastly surpassed Dow Jones with similar people running both companies. Dow became so wrapped in the small details, they overlooked the big opportunities open to them. Andrew Smith suggests using long-term strategic thinking about a situation, rather than short-term tactical thinking which results in a knee-jerk reaction. When under pressure to make a decision, take a little time to consider the big picture consequences of your action.

I do a lot of research in my business, and something I’ve noticed is that more people are emphasizing the importance of becoming wealthy. Graeme Stuart, in this article, says: Generating huge profits and becoming rich is essential!

His reasoning is similar to others that allowing small or negative thinking to dominate your thoughts will cause small and negative results. If you have no money and are constantly struggling to meet your expenses, how in the world can you help anyone else, which should be the goal of everyone? You certainly can’t make any significant difference to the human race or the World.

Stuart observes that a great many people who consider themselves to be “spiritual” are poor. It seems to him there is widespread thinking that people can’t be wealthy and spiritual at the same time. His rebuttal to this is to look at the great good that billionaires like Richard Branson, Bill Gates, and Warren Buffett are doing through charitable organizations as they fund hospitals and set up educational institutions. He says to become rich, your goals must be to help more people than just yourself. These might include your family, community, or perhaps the entire world, if your thought is big enough. An example is Gandhi, who liberated India by recognizing the needs of many others rather than what he wanted personally. This idea is set forth by many writers with a similar message, the more you give, the more you get.

T. Harv Eker, in his book, Secrets of the Millionaire Mind™, says: Small thinking and small actions lead to being both broke and unfulfilled. Big thinking and big actions lead to having both money and meaning. The choice is yours!

You should be paying attention to what all these people are saying about thinking big. There’s more to come.
This article by Michael goes to the limiting forces exerted by our worldview. He says, and it is absolutely the truth, we have been taught to think small, not want very much, and to expect less rather than more from life. We have all been drowned in this puritanical thinking since birth. The successful and wealthy people of the world have moved to the next level of thinking—they have committed themselves to being rich and successful and they are ready to keep trying until their big dreams become reality.

The universe has enough of everything—success, wealth, whatever it is you want—so there is no need to worry about taking something away from anyone. There is an endless supply of whatever we want and we must ask for MORE from life, not less. It is not bad to seek more; it is bad that we’ve been taught to think small things and accept less from life. The more you get, the more you can benefit those around you and enrich the world. This is reinforcement of the idea one must be wealthy in order to share wealth with others. You can’t help others if you have nothing with which to help them.

Some quotes from “A Course in Miracles” deal with the fear we will somehow offend those around us if we are successful and wealthy. Consider these ideas:

• Our worst fear is not that we are inadequate, our deepest fear is that we are powerful beyond measure. (This one was worth repeating.)
  
  
• You are a child of God; your playing small doesn’t serve the world. There is nothing enlightened about shrinking so that other people won’t feel insecure around you. We were born to make manifest the glory of God within us.
  
  
• As we are liberated from our own fear, our presence automatically liberates others.

This is the ultimate power of thinking big.

Regina Barr discusses the problem of inner fear further. She conducted a survey where she asked her readers to share their opinions on the power of thinking big. Here’s how they answered:

• 75% said they don’t think big enough about their work or business.
  
  
• 75% felt they lack the ability to follow-through in order to make big thinking work.
  
  
• 85% plus said they have no idea where to start or what things to do to make their big thinking happen.

She says the answer to all these problems is to just change the fear of making a mistake or looking stupid to a focus on making a huge contribution to the world. Here is her plan to do this:

1. List all your big ideas or dreams and share them with someone you trust.
2. Imagine yourself being successful in bringing your big idea to life. Where are you; how are you feeling?
3. Set goals for the way you will set out to make your big thinking work.
4. Establish what actions will move your idea forward.
5. Pick one necessary action and do it right now.

Here’s an article by Ed Mylett, “Be Careful What You Think. It Just Might Come True,” which strikes a chord in my heart. About 20 years ago I wanted to live right where I am now; what happened? I fell all over the place and arrived—at the time, I said exactly the title of this article.

Things often happen in strange ways. Mylett quotes Albert Einstein, who said, “Imagination is more important than knowledge.” Einstein possessed the ability to think unconventionally and gave us scientific theories that changed the world and continue to affect us all. Another example of the work of imagination is Leonardo da Vinci who developed a flying machine that some say actually flew in the 15th Century. The idea was quashed by small thinking religious leaders who labeled it an instrument of evil. The creative aspects of imagination cause things to come into existence. Our individual thoughts draw us to what we think about passionately, much like magnets attract iron particles.

Mylett says what is required to create a live big idea is to allow your mind to go to its positive places. While there, spend all your time thinking about those things you want to be present in your own reality. If you use enough feeling and you really believe in your feelings, then you will begin to manifest these feelings in your actual life.

If you really want to think big, read The Magic of Thinking Big, by David J. Schwartz, Ph.D. This part of a review says everything about the book and about thinking big.

The reviewer said: It changed my life for better. Never thought any book has [sic] the power to do that. Must read for anybody who wants to be successful in life. The best thing about the book is that it gives a tangible edge to creativity and intuition. It gives practical, easy to implement tips to improve productivity and efficiency.

Through all these ideas, remember to ALWAYS THINK BIG.