In “Be Your Future Self Now,” Benjamin Hardy makes the case that in order to achieve ultimate success, you must become your highest self, or “future self.” Achieving this requires identifying your higher self and committing to life-changing goals above all else. This guide will explore Hardy’s argument and provide recommendations for adopting the necessary mindset, supplemented by other success experts.
The Importance of Your Higher Self
According to Hardy, success in life means reaching your full potential by becoming your highest self. This requires all your present actions to move you closer to that goal. Identifying your higher self early on is crucial because your present actions are driven by your future goals and desires.
Having a clear and ambitious vision of your higher self helps you take productive actions in the present that will benefit you over time. Conversely, lacking a clear vision of your higher self leads to unproductive actions that harm your progress towards becoming your best self.
When You Lack a Clear Vision, You Become Unproductive
According to Hardy, lacking a clear vision of your higher self leads to unproductive behaviors that hinder your progress towards becoming your best self. These include instant gratification and non-crucial activities that feel rewarding in the short-term but do not contribute to your long-term goals.
Engaging in such behaviors takes away from the time you should be dedicating towards becoming your higher self. Hardy recommends identifying your higher self and committing to your future goals and desires to avoid unproductive behaviors and ensure that your present actions are beneficial in the long term. The following sections will outline his recommendations for doing so.
How to Become Your Higher Self
The next sections will cover Hardy’s four primary suggestions for achieving your highest potential and how to apply them.
- To become your higher self, according to Hardy:
- Identify who you want to become and the big goals that person has achieved.
- Prioritize three achievable goals to work on over the next five years that will lead you towards your higher self.
- Set specific 12-month goals with clear success criteria to measure your progress towards your priorities.
For example, if your higher self is a renowned graphic designer, your priorities may include getting degrees with stellar grades, building an impressive portfolio, and doing freelance work for local businesses. Your 12-month goals may include finding a mentor, planning your required courses, and achieving a minimum B grade in each class.
Recommendation #2: Set Your Higher Self as Your Daily Priority
To make steady progress towards becoming your ideal self, prioritize daily actions that align with your goals and avoid distractions.
Principle #1: Disregard Non-Crucial Activities
Avoid activities that do not contribute to achieving your goals, such as painting your house, which takes time away from pursuing your 12-month goals.
Principle #2: Schedule 12-Month Goals First
Schedule daily time to work on your goals before other urgent tasks, such as working on your graphic design portfolio before your sales job.
Principle #3: Replace Instant Gratification Habits
Cultivate beneficial habits that align with your goals, such as checking out book cover designs on Goodreads instead of playing video games to improve your graphic design skills.
Recommendation #3: Seek Out Beneficial Environments
Hardy’s Recommendation #3 is to seek out environments that will aid in becoming one’s higher self. This can be achieved by stepping out of one’s comfort zone and surrounding oneself with people who are better than them.
These actions can help develop the skills and habits needed to progress towards one’s goals.
To do this, one should attempt tasks that their higher self would excel in and seek out individuals who have achieved similar goals or are closer to achieving them.
Recommendation #4: Have an Empowering View of Life and Fate
Hardy argues that a disempowering view of life and fate can prevent people from becoming their higher selves. This view is often shaped by three factors: their past, their current circumstances, and a sense of helplessness about their ability to control their future.
Hardy advises adopting three empowering beliefs to become your higher self.
- Firstly, don’t let your past dictate your future; learn from it and use it to grow.
- Secondly, take ownership of your circumstances and ability to change. Find at least one way to benefit from any situation and identify actions you can take to change your circumstances.
- Lastly, believe that you’re the creator of your own fate and that your purpose is to achieve fulfillment and become the highest version of yourself.
Adopting a firm belief that you will become your higher self and expressing gratitude for it will reinforce your belief in yourself and empower you to take necessary actions to achieve your goals.
Burak Bakay 