In my years of discovering and researching personal development there have been an easily countable number of people, places, events and quotes that have made a major impact on my life.

This triumphant thought by Jim Cathcart is one of them:

“How would the person I’d like to be, do the thing I’m about to do?”

There are a few reasons this powerful sentence separates itself from nearly every other quote I’ve ever heard:

• Purpose –Cathcarts assumes you have already decided who you want to be. And if you haven’t, it asks you to first think about that.  Your purpose in life is tied inexplicably to your identity. Who you are is why you are.
• Possibility – Cathcart starts you off with unlimited possibility. You get to decide the kind of person you’d like to be.  This one question does more than weekend course in Sedona.
• Power – Psychologists have long taught that your personal identity (who you see yourself to be) is one of the most powerful, if not the most powerful, motivator in a person’s life. Cathcart gives you the power to change your identity (and thus your life) in the first 7 words. Who do you want to be?
• Ownership – Cathcart allows us to create our solution and thus take ownership for it. Instead of a guru telling us what to think, Cathcart shows us how to think. No more guru worship, people! It’s you who has the power.
• Responsibility – Because we’re dealing with our identities, Cathcart doesn’t have to tell us what to do… or even to do it. Because “the person we’d like to be” is so strong a motivator that the simple question of what to do translates into action. We must “do the thing” once we ask the question. It’s brilliant.

Cathcart’s question is simple, easy to remember and can make a difference for you instantly.

I think of this sentence when:

• I need to give bad news to someone
• I see someone else succeed
• I hurt someone’s feelings
• I don’t want to go to work out
• I’m bored
• I’m hungry and fast food is convenient
• I need to connect with the people I love
• I find myself procrastinating
• And many, many other times in my life

What times could you best use that question?

In all of what Jim Cathcart has done, and it’s been a monumental life of achievement, I believe this is his Opus.

I offer you the chance to experience these words as many times a day as you can. Each time, discover more of the person you’d like to be and as that possibility grows, challenge yourself to take actions that represent you.

Change is the only constant. Start each day with the question:

“How would the person I’d like to be, do the thing I’m about to do?”

With passion and purpose…
Tom

Tom Wood
CEO/Founder
MasteryTV

Jim Cathcart’s website
Jim Cathcart’s videos on MasteryTV