How head trash can nuke you before you start

You have a secret enemy. And it’s in your head. Yes, right now limiting beliefs are stopping you cold. They’re stopping you from reaching for your goals, not just reaching them. If you’ve ever had that, “Oh, I can’t do that” thought, you have head trash. OK, scratch that—if you’re human, you have head trash.

What is head trash?

Everybody has head trash. I have head trash. In some areas, it’s just at a higher level than average. Like the number I think of as “A LOT of money.” What’s not OK about it is that head trash is almost always invisible.

Now that’s scary. You’re getting pushed around by ideas that you can’t even see. And these ideas are shaping your life! The majority of the results in our life come from a very small number of decisions. And those few decisions are dictated by these invisible beliefs. How does that make you feel?

What is my head trash doing to me?

Let’s take money for an example. You make so much money a year. You know why? Not because someone put that artificial limit on you. It’s because you have head trash about an income limit for yourself. Did I hear a scoff? Why haven’t you applied for that $200,000 a year job? Gulp. Oh. That’s too big for me.

Salespeople have head trash. They’re human beings like everyone else. And when they get close to their secret income limit, they’ll find a way to screw it up… no matter how many days are left in the month. When they have a bad month, they over-perform the next month to make up for it. “I’m bad, but I’m not that bad” they say to themselves at the end of the first month. “I’m good, but I’m not that good” they tell themselves at the end of the second, and revert to the level of performance their head trash has outlined.

Start thinking about what your head trash could be. Do you have head trash about where you may live? “Oh, I couldn’t move away from my home town.” “Taking a year and living in Thailand while working over the Internet is for special people.” “Only rich people live in big houses.”

Do you have head trash about where you shop? “Walmart’s for losers.” “I could never go into Harrod’s.” “What if somebody saw me in the Dollar Store?!”

How do I get over my head trash?

I used to have head trash about math. In grade and high school, I let math slip. And I began to develop the unconscious idea that “I am not good at math.” Self-fulfilling prophecy: Jason does badly in math courses. C grade or worse every time. For over a decade it was like this. Nonsense! Eventually, I had to do well in a math course to get into the college program I wanted. I was fortunate. My teacher, Joe, didn’t know or care about my head trash. “Learn the method,” he told me over and over, “and you can’t go wrong.” Guess what? Jason became very good at math. Over the next three years, I advanced to third year Statistics courses, and got 90% in those classes.

Our head trash is not permanent. In fact, it’s ridiculous and a paper tiger. As soon as you shine the rational light of day upon it, head trash melts away.

The core of head trash is that it’s irrational. There is NO REASON why you can’t move to Thailand, shop at the Dollar Store, switch careers or become good at math. But if you remain unaware of these secret ideas, they rule you. You’re beaten before you begin.

The next time you find yourself feeling strangely uncomfortable about something, take note. There’s your warning light. Head Trash Alert. Ask yourself: Why am I feeling this way? How do I really think about this idea or situation? What head trash could I have about it? Take out the trash, and you’ll become a freer human being.

About the Author

Jason Kanigan is a sales force developer who works with businesses from solo entrepreneurs to Inc. Top 1000 firms to increase their sales. Do you have a sales problem Jason can fix? Visit jasonkanigan.com to find out!

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