Step on to the putting green with me. I hand you a putter and I tell you it had once been used by golfing great Tiger Woods. You are now 32% more likely to sink your putt. (Harvard Business Review, July/August 2012)
This effect is known as positive contagion, the idea that when someone touches an object, they leave behind something of their essence. This goes beyond the placebo effect and includes the priming effect, which refers to the tendency of certain stimuli to predispose people to behave in certain ways. If a certain talisman or belief system gives us confidence and increases our sense of competence, then we tend to perform better.
It is that simple: believe you will perform better and you will perform better.
A little bit of confidence goes a long way. Of course, the opposite is true as well…
Get yourself, your mind, your attitude fully on your side. Believe in yourself. Granted, it does not guarantee victory or success but it DOES pretty much assure that you would do better than if you doubted yourself, than if you didn’t believe in your greatness, in your destiny.
Closing quotes:
“Think you can, think you can’t, you are right.” — Henry Ford; 1863-1947
“Your chances of success in any undertaking can always be measured by your belief in yourself.” — Robert Collier; 1885-1950
“Believe and act as if it were impossible to fail.” — Charles F. Kettering, inventor of the electric car starter; 1876-1958