As a life-long learner, I absolutely love this era we are in, where, with one click of a mouse, you can gain knowledge on everything and anything – whether it’s via blogs, webinars, paid online courses or knowledge platforms, such as Coursera, Udemy, Open culture and others. Yet, at the same time, this overflow of knowledge can be overwhelming, and can become a distraction more than anything else.

Why is it that a coach/program/conference/book helped one entrepreneur triple their business, and not yours? Or, this productivity course really worked for some, but not you? The testimonials (aka “social proof” in business development jargon) are there, yet you don’t get the same results.

Why is that?

The reason why an expert’s advice works for some and not others lies in our internal framework.

The idea presented might be a great one, but it doesn’t fit your brain’s wiring. Let me give you a concrete example:

Brendon Burchard (whom I respect tremendously) has the 1-PageProductivity Planner. I love the idea, yet it just doesn’t work for me. I’m wired to see and work with a bigger picture. I plan on a yearly, quarterly and weekly basis. If I try (and I did, several times even!) to work with a daily focus, it just doesn’t suit me. So, of course I won’t see the results others see in their personal effectiveness using this concept.

I’m sure you’ve experienced this yourself, probably more than once: You follow the advice of someone you admire, someone who is where you want to be in the future, you try to apply their advice step by step, but it doesn’t “stick”.

What to do?

…Enter the concept of beta testing your brain.

As entrepreneurs, we beta test our sales strategies, our marketing ideas and many other aspects of our business, yet we never think of beta testing our most important asset: our brain.

Four steps to beta test your brain for success

No.1: The power of three

In NLP (neuro-linguistic programming), we study a lot about the functioning of the brain, and what we know is the brain works in groups of three. On a brain level, if you only have one option (or one person’s advice in this context), you don’t have any options. When you have two options, you have a dilemma. When you have three options, then you have a choice. So, instead of following one person’s advice, select three people on one subject matter.

No.2: Test for 30 days

Take advice and test the concept for 30 days. As with anything in life, you need time and discipline to incorporate new habits and see actual results.

No.3: Make edits based on your internal framework

As you test someone else’s concept, keep note of what was easy for you to integrate and to do, and what was hard or simply didn’t stick. From there, take the “best of” concept to create one that works for your way of thinking. Does this new personalised framework work for you? Edit and tailor it until it does.

No.4: Measure, measure, measure

It has been said “What gets measured gets done,” and I couldn’t agree more. Measure your progress continually, as this is how you’ll know that this adapted concept works for you. In addition, seeing your own results will build momentum and further motivate you.

The journey to success is built on momentum.

The reality is that the best strategies are the ones that work for you. We are all wired differently. Beta testing your brain will help you understand how you are wired, how you learn, and how you operate efficiently. This is what most experts did. They’ve accumulated knowledge, put it together in a way that fit their internal framework, and then shared it with the world.

So, if you want to see concrete results and build momentum, follow these four steps, and design your internal framework for success.

Always remember: “No one can give you wiser advice than yourself.” Now go out there, beta test, design your internal framework, and become the thought leader you were meant to be!

Because once we know how our brain is wired, we see that … …

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