Secrets to Success Deborah Cole Micek and John-Paul Micek

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Be careful about what you delete

One of the most important things you can do to enjoy what seems like a new, faster computer is to defragment your computer every month. Results are immediate, making it easy to quickly access the most frequently used programs on your desktop.

On the other hand, if you delete the wrong things, such as the necessary software from your computer, you will experience frustration with your computer. Error messages will continue to pop up on your screen. You will not be allowed to take the actions you want.

The same rule applies to the most elaborate computer you have -- your brain. Your brain is a super-computer that surpasses all man-made computers in its complexity and capacity.

You have probably heard how we only use a very small capacity of our brain's ability during our lifetime. Part of the reason for this is that we haven't yet learned to program our brain to yield the best results.

Instead, we allow the experiences around us to teach us how to think, speak, and act in a manner that may not ultimately serve us. Once you learn how your brain operates, you can learn how to program it for maximum results.

Do the following exercise with a friend. You'll both begin to see how what you allow your mind to focus on determines what you may delete in the process.

» Take out a credit card and place it in front of the both of you.

» Each of you should focus on the credit card for the next 10 seconds. Then put it away.

» On separate blank pieces of paper, each of you should list all the things you remember about the credit card. Describe it in detail.

After you have completed your list, share it with your friend to compare what you may have missed. Some things people miss in their description are the size of the card, the texture, or the embossing of the numbers.

Notice that when you are focusing on one side of the credit card, it is impossible to see the other side. Try to apply this observation to the conversations you have with other people.

Every second of every day, you are making decisions on what you want to focus on and what you'll ignore. Are you focusing on the things you do NOT have in your life, thus deleting your possibilities? Do you keep telling yourself that you can't pursue your dreams because of some particular reason, such as you didn't graduate from college?

Consider the fact that Thomas Edison had no more than three months of formal education. But he didn't allow himself to be imprisoned by other people's opinions of how things should be done. Instead, he created new things. He did what others thought would be impossible.