Inverse Paranoid!

Woman sat in a yoga position meditating, isolated on a white background.

When something changes, like an appointment or a planned event you are looking forward to, you can react in two ways.

One way to react is with disappointment, which is normal.

The alternative reaction is to say that this is the best thing to happen because it is going to lead to a better outcome. Brian Tracy, my co-author on our book, “What You Seek is Seeking You”, would call this attitude – inverse paranoid. Instead of becoming paranoid and upset, you do the opposite because you are confident that everything that happens is leading you to your ideal outcome.

W. Clement Stone was described as being inverse paranoid because he believed the Universe was conspiring in his favor as opposed to the other way around. He would look for opportunity in everything that happened – good, bad, indifferent.

In simple terms, a person who is paranoid is regarded as someone who thinks the world is out there to do them harm. An inverse paranoid on the other hand is someone who thinks that the world is out there to do them good!

For instance, if you have just been charged $600 US for changing your flight, instead of feeling ripped off ask yourself what opportunity does this change present for you? It happened to me once, and naturally, I was not too amused. So I went out looking for the opportunity it presented. Lo and behold, I found quite a few opportunities that were worth a lot more –inverse paranoid at work!

Give it a shot next time – at least in thought, if not in dollars and cents.

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