02 Jun 2025

Thinking: What are you thinking about? The power of the mind.

“Don’t think about the pink elephant!”
Are you sure you’re still not thinking about a pink elephant?!

It is an odd sensation to realise that your mind will focus on whatever you point it towards. Whatever your personal passions – whether they be medieval monasteries, train spotting, post-impressionism, or your favourite professional sports team – your world-view is shaped by, and your life can be strongly affected by the focus-points that you have. And these focus points may change significantly over time, so that something that once enthralled you or took up a lot of head space, fades to obscurity.

In sports, the power of the mind is something that has been focused on from a number of angles.

“The Inner Game of Tennis” is a classic book that has much to say that is far beyond tennis. It covers a range of ideas – including some common sense, but also perhaps some counter-intuitive thinking:

• Letting go – not hanging on to what has already been
• Not trying too hard – extra effort in practice is good but in matches it can interfere
• Self-judgement – the importance of quickly catching and redirecting negative self-talk
• Potential – realising that you have inside you, at all times, your whole potential
• Bad habits – and the importance of replacing these with a positive alternative
• Control – focus on what you can control and avoid over-expending effort on things you can’t control

When it comes to personal finance, many of these points remain equally valid. But here I want to hone in on the idea of concentration. The author, Gallwey, notes that our mind’s ability to time travel – to dwell on what has already happened, or to project to what is about to happen – can lead to our greatest lapses in concentration. Every stage of life brings new challenges to our personal financial planning (many of which have been detailed in our newsletters and various social media articles) – often the trouble is that as humans, we’re still tied up in the past or the future. And we fail to deal with our present day.

What have you done this week or this month to be sure you’re on top of your personal finances? Is there anything you know you’re putting off? Are there nagging concerns that need to be discussed, or acted upon? Life may be what happens while you’re making other plans, but unless nothing has changed in your life (or the world around you), what have you done to adapt and keep your personal finances up to date and on track for the future?

If you would like to discuss how I may be able to help you with your journey to financial peace of mind – please book a short informal chat here:

https://calendly.com/duncan-bw-hoebridgewealth/30min

NOTE: None of the above is financial or investment advice and you should speak to me or someone else professionally qualified to give you advice specifically tailored to your circumstances.