It is hard enough to see what is already there, to remove the many impediments to a clear view of reality, but Steve’s gift was even greater: he saw clearly what was not there, what could be there, what had to be there. His mind was never a captive of reality. Quite the contrary. He imagined what reality lacked, and he set out to remedy it.

“Why is this goal important to me personally? What’s at stake both positively and negatively?”

motivation to change.

Personalizing. That’s when we blame ourselves for random negative occurrences.

we need to recognize that most of the barriers we face are imaginary.

Here’s an example so you can see it in action.

Catastrophizing. That’s when we assume the worst even with little evidence.2

The good news is that you can change the rhyme scheme.

The first key difference between an unmet goal and personal success is the belief that it can be achieved.