Make Shyft Happen Like Einstein
Imagine a young boy, sitting in his backyard, gazing deeply into the sky. Feeling the warm sun hitting his skin, he pictures a ray of light and ponders what it would be like to ride alongside it and speed light years away. The boy is Albert Einstein and this daydream led him to discover his groundbreaking theory of relativity E = MC² in 1905.
How many daydreams did you have as a child? Were you brave enough to take one dream, plant it firmly in the ground and build your life upon it?
Albert Einstein’s work gave rise to the field of Quantum physics and laid the foundation for the next generation of physicists. More importantly, 100 years after this famous discovery, Einstein’s approach to life and science is now more relevant than ever.
Einstein embodied a childlike sense of wonder and imagination throughout his life. He famously wrote to his friend, “People like you and me never grow old… We never cease to stand like curious children before the great mystery into which we were born.”
The worldview in our 21st century values logic and reason more than it does creativity and abstraction. However, this childlike sense of wonder that Einstein embodied is something we all should explore more. It is both the most important and the most overlooked key we possess that can unlock the secrets hidden in the Quantum universe.
The current worldview: Classical Newtonian
Until Einstein came onto the scene, the prevailing worldview was informed by the findings of Isaac Newton.
Classical Newtonian mechanics deals with “large” objects like apples and phenomena that are observable like gravity (this may invoke the famous story of Newton sitting under an apple tree).
Our current approach to directing our lives is still influenced by Newtonian thinking. The current worldview would have us believe that the path towards achieving our goals is linear.
“Work hard and climb the ladder.”
“You get what you put in.”
This mechanical cause-and-effect explanation of the world is easy to grasp, but does not account for the hidden forces that are at play around us all the time.
The Newtonian approach to achieving our goals is: “I have to do more.” The Quantum approach is: “I have to be more.” Both have merits. Neither should be ignored.
Basics of a Quantum worldview
Although Classical Newtonian mechanics does well to explain the behavior of large objects, it fails to explain the phenomena that happen on the tiniest of scales. Quantum mechanics, on the other hand, deals with matter that is not immediately perceptible, like atoms.
A unique quality in the Quantum world is that we can make minuscule shifts to experience cataclysmic results; split an atom and get an atom bomb.
Quantum mechanics is also relevant in our brains. It provides the best explanations of how individual neurons interact to create thought and consciousness.
Why is imagination important then? Because, like Einstein, we have to use our imagination to visualize anything happening in the Quantum world. We have to imagine what it is like to ride on a beam of light and we have to imagine what it is like for neurons to wire and fire in our brains and how this translates to thought.
Escorted by our imaginations, we can start to visualize the fireworks, vibrations and dances that are occurring in the Quantum world and we can use them to our advantage.
Because these forces are hidden, the manipulation of these forces feels like magic. We experience outsized returns in relation to our initial investment.
The process of achieving goals by tapping into the Quantum world is something I call, “Making Shyft Happen.”
Making Shyft Happen starts with two key steps. The first: mastering our thoughts.
Rewire the subconscious to Make Shyft Happen
Oftentimes we are not getting the results we want in life because our subconscious mind is working against us. In fact, approximately 10% of our brain function happens in our conscious mind while 90% of our brain function is locked in our subconscious. Doing more and working harder only addresses the 10% of our mind we can easily control.
The problem is that most of our subconscious mind is determined before the age of seven. If we are not actively working to rewire our subconscious, our 7-year-old brain is actually running our life.
We can begin to rewire our brain with the quality of questions we ask ourselves and the amount of work we put into pinpointing the beliefs we hold that are limiting our potential.
Simple exercises can help reframe the thoughts from our subconscious that are holding us back. For example:
List the doubts and fears you have around your goals.
Determine which statements are 100% true and factual.
Strike-out all statements that are not true.
Like Einstein, we can also perform our own thought exercises, using our imagination: “What is the difference between a conscious thought and a subconscious thought? How do they look different? How do they feel different?”
The simple act of questioning and visualizing helps our brain become more aware of itself and the gears and pathways that comprise its inner engineering.
If we want to change the world, we must first change our minds.
Think positive and Make Shyft Happen
The second step to Making Shyft Happen: mastering our emotions.
Emotions are the conductors of our life. We use emotions to determine the friends we make, which hobbies we choose and even what goals we set our mind to. We want that raise or that promotion because of how it will make us feel.
The first step to getting emotions to work for us is to start by noticing them.
Start noticing how emotions affect your day-to-day. What are the emotions you feel when you first wake up? What about when you check your phone? How does your posture change as all the emotions throughout the day pile up? And to what extent are you reacting to your emotions rather than generating them?
One of the greatest paradigm shifts I made in my life came after watching Shawn Achor’s TED Talk “The Happy Secret to Better Work” where he talks about changing the formula for happiness. Achor proposes that we avoid saying things like, “I will be successful then I will be happy.” We are always putting happiness on the other side of success.
Instead, we should say things like, “I am happy and therefore I will be successful.” Happiness must come first. It is scientifically proven that our brains function better and are more creative when in a state of positive emotions. Whenever possible, we must choose to be positive.
Developing emotional fitness is key to Making Shyft Happen. Once we recognize our emotions, we can then consciously make a home out of our positive emotional states.
The Make Shyft Happen rocket ship
You are a rocket ship floating around on spaceship earth and you’re aiming for the moon. Where Newtonian principles are your rocket fuel, Quantum principles are your calibrations. The rocket fuel will get you a long way, but without the right aim, you’ll end up like this guy on J. Cole’s track.
“The good news is… you came a long way. The bad news is… you went the wrong way.”
When working on your calibrations, remember to be like Einstein and tap into your childlike sense of awe. Let your imagination steer your thoughts and emotions and let the magic moments follow.
Walter Isaacson said it best in reflecting on Einstein’s legacy, that “an appreciation for the glories of science is a joyful trait for good society. It helps us remain in touch with that childlike capacity for wonder.”
Let's all be like Einstein and Make Shyft Happen.