Psycho-Cybernetics (Summary)
As a plastic surgeon, Dr. Maxwell Maltz expected his patients to be overjoyed after he fixed a scar or reshaped a nose. But he was stunned to discover that for many, nothing changed. They still felt ugly and acted shy. This led him to a revolutionary conclusion: your external reality doesn't matter nearly as much as the 'self-image' you hold in your mind's eye—a mental blueprint that dictates your success, happiness, and what you believe is possible.
Your Brain Can't Tell Real from Imagined
The human nervous system responds to vividly imagined experiences in almost the exact same way it responds to real ones. You can 'practice' skills, build confidence, and change your habits through detailed mental rehearsal.
Maltz cites studies of basketball players divided into three groups. One group physically practiced free throws for 20 days. A second did nothing. The third group simply spent 20 minutes a day imagining making perfect free throws. The result? The visualization group improved nearly as much as the group that physically practiced.
Your Self-Image Is Your Master Program
You cannot consistently outperform your self-image. Your subconscious mind will always find a way to act in a manner consistent with how you see yourself, limiting your achievements to the boundaries of this internal picture.
A salesperson who deeply believes they are a '$50,000-a-year' person will unconsciously sabotage their own efforts when they start having a $100,000 year. They might 'forget' a key appointment or get sick before a major deal, because their internal 'servo-mechanism' is programmed for a $50k reality and is correcting the 'error' of over-performance.
Treat Failure Like a Torpedo
Our internal goal-striving mechanism is designed to learn by trial and error. What we call 'failure' is simply negative feedback used to correct our course, not a reason to abandon the goal. True failure only happens when you give up.
A torpedo launched at a ship doesn't 'fail' every time it zig-zags off course; it's using constant feedback from its target to make corrections. Similarly, when we learn to ride a bike, we don't quit after the first wobble. We unconsciously correct our balance based on the 'failure' of leaning too far, eventually finding the right path.
De-hypnotize Yourself from Negative Beliefs
Most of our limiting beliefs were 'hypnotically' installed in us by past failures, offhand negative comments from others, or childhood experiences. We must consciously recognize and de-hypnotize ourselves from these false limitations by questioning their validity.
A student who was once told by a teacher, 'You're just not a math person,' may carry that belief for life, avoiding anything quantitative. They've been 'hypnotized' into believing a fiction. By consciously challenging this belief ('Is that really true, or just one person's opinion?') and deliberately acting against it, they can break the spell and update their self-image.
