How Mindtraining Can Change Your Life
If you’d like to know more about what Thriving might mean for you please get in touch. If you’re looking for the PhD Thriving program visit this page.
Mindtraining aims to teach techniques that enable people to reach their goals. Every person is unique, but almost all of us seek less suffering and greater happiness. While many people have identified a particular personal and professional objective, most of us have a specific mental state that shapes our experience of life. Often, altering our current mental state leads to positive changes in many areas of our personal and professional lives. Mindtraining uses four generalised states, summarised below, as a way of describing the most common mindsets we observe in people. These are only guides designed as a learning tool to establish where you currently are and how you wish to develop. Once you can understand your current mental state and which one you want to transition to, a strategy and plan for the change needs to be developed.
There are no moral judgments implied on this page; everyone should be free to live in the way they want. Mindtraining is a systematic way of taking more control of how you think and using this to reach your goals. However, this approach differs greatly from many of the ‘self-help’ guides or ‘self-improvement’ therapies that promise to transform your life. Mindtraining shares certain principles with many ancient philosophies and is consistent with the principles of neuropsychology. The essence of mindtraining is understanding the human condition; the need to be compassionate with oneself and others. This state creates the platform for the sustainable happiness, well-being and success, which underpins training’s success.
The Mindtraining Mental States below are summaries you can use to decide where you might be at the moment and how you’d like to change. There is a significant body of work on which these states have been based, but they are examples or archetypes; they will not reflect the full, lived experience of everyone. If you have any questions about moving to Thriving, get in touch.
| Mindtraining Mental State | Summary of Characteristics |
| Thriving | Enjoying life and overcoming challenges. Having a strong sense of purpose and a life plan. Successfully balancing the needs of others with your own. Living healthily and sustainably. |
| Coasting | Having a positive attitude to life. Being able to set goals and targets for the medium and long term. Having positive personal and professional networks. Things are good but you still have to make compromises with your quality of life. |
| Coping | Struggling to feel optimistic about who you are and what you are doing. Knowing you want to grow and develop but lacking a clear plan. Feeling the need for better balance in your relationships and networks. Health and wellbeing are often a low priority. |
| Surviving | Often, achieving your basic daily goals requires all your effort. Feeling stuck in a rut with few ideas about how to progress. You often feel alone or socially isolated. Looking after your health and well-being is often an afterthought. |
We live in a world of exaggerated claims and hyperbole. It’s no longer possible to watch an advertisement for ice cream, dishcloths, or shampoo without the presentation of the dramatic advantages of the products. However, mindtraining is something completely different. It’s not an object; it’s a process which alters how we evaluate everything, including ourselves. By exercising greater control over how we think and act, we can change brain function and structure, leading to qualitative improvements in how we experience and engage with life. All that we experience is seen through the prism of our consciousness, directly linked to our hopes and fears, our happiness and sadness. By understanding and transforming problematic mental processes, we can dramatically increase our happiness, well-being, and success. If you’d like to know more, get in touch.
Mindtraining for Life 