Unlock Your Hidden Brain Power with John Assaraf - Behavioral Expert, Ep #79

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On this episode of the Coming Clean Podcast, I have guest John Assaraf. He is one of the leading mindset and behavioral experts in the world who has appeared numerous times on Larry King Live, Anderson Cooper, and The Ellen DeGeneres Show. His latest bestselling book Innercise: The New Science to Unlock Your Brain’s Hidden Power, helps individuals recognize and release the mental and emotional blocks that prevent them from achieving their goals and fullest potential.

John has built 5 multimillion-dollar companies including taking one public on NASDAQ with a market cap of $2 billion. He also grew Re/Max of Indiana to 1200 sales associates and $4.5 billion a year in sales. He has written 2 New York Times Bestselling books that have been translated into 35 languages and has been featured in 8 movies, including the blockbuster hit “The Secret” and "Quest For Success" with Richard Branson and the Dalai Lama. Today, he is CEO of MyNeuroGym.com, a company dedicated to using the most advanced technologies and evidence-based brain training methods to help individuals strengthen their mindset and skills, so they achieve their goals and dreams, faster and easier than ever before.

You will want to hear this episode if you are interested in...

  • How did it all start? [1:16]

  • The most pivotal moment in John’s life [9:29]

  • Meeting Mr. Brown. Are you interested or committed? [13:17]

  • Make the decision THEN figure out how! [17:28]

  • The spark of hope [20:36]

  • Leaving the zone of the known [24:36]

  • Breaking free of his ecosystem [32:26]

  • Learning leverage from Walter Schneider [42:59]

  • Are you saying yes to you? [48:48]

  • Change your brain, change your life [52:24]

  • Going from Remax to world-renowned behavioral expert [56:36]

  • What John is working on today [1:03:28]


The one question that changed the trajectory of John’s life

Are you interested or committed?

At the age of 19, John met with a real estate investor named Mr. Brown. At that meeting, he was asked what his goals were. His answer was he’d like to buy a car, move out of his parents’ house, and get a better job. Mr. Brown asked but what are your bigger goals? He handed John a document that said 1980 Goal Setting Guide. It had questions on it like... at what age do you want to retire? How much net worth do you want to have when you retire? Describe the lifestyle you would like to live. What kind of charitable contributions do you want to make? What kind of fun do you want to have? What kind of experiences do you want to have? Where would you like to travel? What kind of clothes do you want? These are things John had never considered before. After spending 20 minutes’ worth of imagination he gave the document back to Mr. Brown.

Mr. Brown said these are some pretty ambitious goals and that he was going to ask John one question and the answer to this question will determine whether he would achieve each and every one of these things.

He asked, “Are you interested in achieving, having, and giving these things or are you committed?

But what’s the difference? 

If you’re interested you will keep telling yourself the stories of your past. You’ll keep reinforcing the beliefs that you’re not good enough, smart enough, or worthy. You’ll keep repeating the same habits that are causing the same results over and over again. But if you’re committed you will do whatever it takes to let go of your past and you will develop the beliefs required to achieve your goals. 

Passing the test

That conversation with Mr. Brown led John to a spark of hope through borrowed possibility. He made commitments to move to Toronto, go to real estate school, and be mentored. When he wanted to quit Mr. Brown was there and wouldn’t let him. He would ask “What do you think quitting will do to your self-image?” or “If you quit will you ever trust yourself to complete anything ever again?”

If you quit, what character are you bringing forth? If you stick to something what character do you think you are developing? Self-worth, self-esteem, confidence, certainty, self-image. Isn't this the character required to achieve every goal you want to achieve? John was shown the short and term ramifications of his choices. One group was going to reinforce something he was detesting in himself and found despicable in his personality and character. The other was aspirational. He wants to be a man of character. Loving, caring, kind, intelligent, giving, smart, capable, confident, certain, those are the characters he wanted. He had none of those, but that's what he wanted. There's this razor's edge between your old identity’s stories, reasons, excuses, traumas, and... a different path. 

And so John stuck it out and on June 20th he passed the test he’d studied so hard for and that borrowed possibility became a little confidence of his own. 


Are you saying yes to you?

Are you saying “I'm going to figure out a way to let go of my fears. I'm going to upgrade my knowledge. I'm gonna upgrade my skills.”? When you modify your identity to match your destiny, you’re going to go create these neural networks that are going to help you achieve your goals versus reinforce the neural networks and patterns that move you away from them and keep you stuck. You will develop the beliefs that you need to believe because you weren't born with any beliefs. You aren't born with a self-image or fears or knowledge or skills and those are the four things that hold us back. And they are ALL changeable.

The first thing you have to do is commit to what it is that you want to achieve and then get on the path to progress towards what it is you want to achieve.

Resources & People Mentioned

Connect with John Assaraf

Connect With Peter O. Estevez



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