21 Day Mind Hacking

Challenge
You may think that mind hacking is a skill that only geniuses use, but it’s more than that. It a system!
It’s such an easy system than anybody can do it – even you. I created this practice challenge to
integrate into your normal, everyday lives using simple achievements. That’s right; you’re going to
turn these mental hacks into a video game within your life. So you might as well have fun, right?!
Like any other challenge, if you stick with it and master it, you’ll find that you’ll hold that sense of
overwhelming satisfaction of winning the game within the palm of your hand. Game on!

Like any other new habit, you’re starting (like a new diet) the first day is always the hardest. Now
don’t stress out just yet! I’ve designed this challenge to start small and work from there, making it
easy to digest (pun intended). Consider each day an achievement that you’ve unlocked when you
finished it. As the days progress, you’ll notice that the game becomes easier and easier! The biggest
trick is to focus on the “level goals” of the day and don’t sweat the small stuff. Even if you miss a
day or two, don’t lose hope! There’s no rule that you have to do this challenge in one sitting and
everyone has different playstyles. Go at your own pace!

Day One:
This part has two easy steps -
Step One: Break out a pad of paper and a pen.
Step Two: Keep that pad handy (within eyeshot) and write down specifically when and where you
will work on your mind hacking challenge. The time and place I highly recommend is your bedroom
when right you wake up. If that’s not a good spot/time, then aim for someplace quiet that you can
get to at the same time every day. Your brain loves patterns and consistency. Might as well give it
what it wants, right?
Tip – You can print out this challenge to take notes on if you don’t have a dedicated pad handy!

Practice Time Practice Location

Day Two:
When you find your brain filled with thoughts, then take out a piece of paper (or break out your
phone) and jot down those thoughts. Try and list as many as you can. You might find out that some
of those thoughts have escaped your mind, but don’t go chasing after them. What you’re doing is
building up your self-awareness. Over the course of the day, try to do this as many times as you can.
Remember, there’s no need to let it intrude on your normal activities. These are simple “ah-ha!”
moments of self-clarity. It can be three times or twenty; it doesn’t matter. The only thing that
matters is keeping track of how many of those “ah-ha!” moments you have.
 Number of Ah-Ha! Moments List of Thoughts

Day Three:
Each distraction that you face is another bit of information added to your brain, which causes your
mind to get cluttered. But how can you avoid distractions entirely? The truth is you can’t. You can,
however, minimize the number of distractions that you face while you are performing your task.
Here’s how you can start limiting distractions: become aware of when your attention gets pulled
from something you are concentrating on. Make a note of every time you get distracted –from a text
message alert to you realizing that you’ve checked Facebook or Twitter for the 10th time in an hour.

Number of Distractions List of Distractions

Day Four:

Take a break from The Matrix. No, seriously. Every single day you are bombarded with
technological white noise that distracts you even if you’re not aware of it. Little known fact: digital
marketing experts estimate that most Americans are exposed to around 4,000 to 10,000 ads each
day. That’s a lot of garbage cluttering your brain fighting for your attention.

Time to turn it off. Take an hour or two to disconnect from any form of unnecessary digital
distractions – Facebook Messages that aren’t work-related. Unsubscribe from those random
promotional emails that keep popping up. Turn off notifications for Twitter. After it’s all said and
done, make a list of all the distractions you were able to turn off. Good job by the way! That part
can be hard!

Number of Distractions List of Distractions Turned Off

Day Five:

Time to make your brain strong! Get ready because here we’re going to do a visualization and
concentration exercise. Head over to the quiet location you set aside and prepare yourself for a
journey inside your mind. Keep your arms, feet, and head inside the ride at all times!

1. Set aside 5 or 10 minutes every day for this training. Like physical exercise, this is going to
take time and repetition, but trust me, it’s worth it.
2. Look at a detailed picture of your choice. You can even search for an image online if you
like. Now, look at the picture intently for one minute. Your job at this point is to absorb as
many details as possible. Next, close your eyes and then try to recreate the picture with as
 many features as possible. Do not refer to the picture again. Just try and see how detailed
you can get the picture in your mind. Take 5 to 10 minutes for this process.
3. Open your eyes and look at the picture again. Note how many things you got right and the
ones that you got wrong.
Number of Things You Got Right Number of Things You Got Wrong

Day Six:

Time for another round of visualization and concentration exercise. Grab an object of your
choice. I recommend choosing an object with fewer details so that you can start with something
comfortable in the beginning, but you are free to make it as challenging as you like. Observe the
object and notice as many details as you want. Put the object away, close your eyes and take the next
5 minutes to imagine the object with as much detail as possible.

Bonus: If you managed to imagine the object quickly (say, within 3 minutes), then you can take the
remaining time to imagine the object in action. For example, you chose a pen as the item you would
like to focus on. Once you have imagined it in detail, then try and imagine writing with the pen. Like
the previous day, note how many things you got right and the ones that you got wrong.

Number of Things You Got Right Number of Things You Got Wrong

Day Seven:

This one is going to be a bit more challenging, depending on how many objects are present in your
surroundings. Look around you at the room you are in. Try and observe as many details as possible.
Then, close your eyes for 5 minutes and recreate the room in your mind.

Bonus points: When you get good at recreating the room, you can even imagine interacting with
many objects in the room. For example, flipping on the light switch and imagining the light turning
on. This technique adds a bit more challenge, but it flexes your mind more. Like the previous days,
note how many things you got right and the ones that you got wrong. You should be noticing now
that you’re able to get more things right than wrong!

Number of Things You Got Right Number of Things You Got Wrong
Day Eight:

Next, you are going to observe the room you are in. Take in as many details as possible. Now, move
around the room. Interact with objects and try out different activities. This time, try and imagine the
smell of the room. Try cooking something and imagine how it might smell. Try playing your favorite
music on your laptop or device and imagine hearing the tune. Essentially, you are going to use all
your senses (touch, hear, smell, sight, and if possible, taste) in your imagination. No notes this time!

Day Nine:

Let this be the wildest imagination technique. In this method, you are going to recreate your room in
your mind once again. Start by moving around and interacting with various objects. Try to use all
your senses. Now, imagine something completely outrageous. It could be a small dragon that flies
around the room. It could be martial artists performing a complicated routine, an otter sitting on the
sofa, characters from your favorite comic books or video games, or anything else that you would like
to imagine. The idea is to make them as detailed as possible.

Day Ten:

So you’ve cut the distractions from your mind and started brain strength training like Arnold
Schwarzenegger. What’s next? Time to start breaking the conditioning. In a way, we are moist robots
that are conditioned (programmed) to be what we are. The good news? We can recondition
ourselves over time. Time to change your programming!

There is a little voice inside your mind that’s filled with self-doubt, but you’re rarely aware of it.
Remember those Ah-Ha moments of clarity exercises a few days back? That training will come in
handy for this part. Instead of finding and focusing on any intrusive thought instead focus only on
the negative ones.

1. When you catch yourself having a negative thought ask yourself, “where did that come
from?” and write it down if you're able.
2. Take a pause when you’ve captured that thought and make a note of how that thought made
you feel.
3. Ask yourself the Universal Questions: Who, What, When, Where, Why, and How when it
relates to that thought. (Who told me to think that way? Where did I pick up that idea? Why
did I think that I wasn’t worth it? Etc…)

Where did that thought How that thought made you feel Universal Questions
come from?
Day Eleven:

To get really used to this process, day eleven is a repeat of the previous day’s exercise.

Where did that thought How that thought made you feel Universal Questions
come from?

Day Twelve:

Once more, with feeling! Again, Day Twelve is a repeat of the previous day.

Where did that thought How that thought made you feel Universal Questions
come from?

Day Thirteen:

Now that you’ve gotten used to being keenly aware of your negative thoughts, it’s time to start
reprogramming yourself. Every time you catch yourself thinking something negative, and
understand its route source, take both a mental and physical action against it. Do this exercise every
day from this point onward.

1. Interrupt the negative thought as quickly as you can. Try to catch it before it finishes.
2. Tell yourself to STOP. Literally, stop what you’re doing. Verbally, and vocally tell yourself to
STOP out loud. This causes your negative program to screech to a halt breaking the pattern.
3. Adjust the program by tapping yourself three times in a way you feel comfortable. Smack
yourself on the forehead. Flick your wrist. Smack the back of your hand. Just like Pavlov’s
Dogs, your training your mind to change.
4. Say to yourself aloud, “I am *destructive negative thought* again. Stop. I am *positive
thought*. Example: I am blaming myself again. Stop it. I'm brilliant at helping my company
and our customers succeed.
Day Fourteen:

Now comes the fun part. We’re going to double-down on the reprogramming. How? By rewarding
yourself. Here’s how:

Every time you successfully STOP and hack your negative thoughts, give yourself a reward. This
could be as simple as a small treat or a physical compliment while patting yourself on the head.
Don’t reward yourself with something too large otherwise; it’ll end up costing you. We’re hacking
your mind, not overindulging. Your brain loves dopamine (the chemical that makes you happy), and
by rewarding yourself, you’re reprogramming your mind to seek out the pattern that you’re creating
by turning negativity into positivity.

Day Fifteen:

You’ve done great so far! Time to keep going!

There’s one thing that really successful people always do to reprogram their thoughts. They write it
down. Ben Franklin did it. So did Edison and Steve Jobs. There’s a direct link to remembering
things and creating habits and writing things down. Why do you think the notepad is necessary?
Next, is a bit more writing. This may sound hokey, or metaphysical “woo woo,” but it revolves
around positive affirmations. There’s no magical pill to success, but what we can do is hyper-focus
on the positive thing we desire. See? There was a reason why the focus exercises were worth it!

1. Throughout the day, physically write down a positive idea you want to be manifested at least
15 times a day. It can’t be on a phone or keyboard. Pen/pencil and paper only!
Example: I, *insert name here* will become a highly successful company manager.

By doing this, you’re focusing on one direct goal and imagining that the goal is already achieved.
And because your mind treats reality and your imagination the same way you’re programming your
mind for success.

Daily Positive Affirmation:

1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
11.
12.
13.
14.
15.
Day Sixteen:

The next step is another easy one. It’s all about repetition.

There are periods of calm between all the bustling moments of your life. They can be in the shower,
waiting in line, or simply doing chores around the house. During those times, break out that small
pad and write down that affirmation you really want to be achieved. That pad will fill up in no time I
guarantee it.

Next, place reminders of that positive goal in obvious places around your house. Good locations are
sticky notes on the fridge or coffee pot. The dashboard of your car is another excellent spot too. If
you’re really motivated, you can put a reminder on your ceiling above your bed – it’ll be the first
thing you see when you open your eyes to wake up.

Day Seventeen:

After your daily game of writing down positive feedback down and rewarding yourself, it’s time to
add an extra step to the fun. It’s all about mental imagery. Your brain is running at top speed now
with a clear objective in mind. Time to add a bit of imagination to the game!
1. During the quiet time, you’ve set aside for yourself every day, take 5-10 minutes, and focus
on the main goal that you want to achieve. After you have that goal-focused imagine actually
doing that goal, imagine what it would feel like to physically feel being there when it is
happening. You're like a top athlete who runs simulations over and over again in their minds
before a game to prepare themselves for an event.

Positive Goal How it made you feel

Day Eighteen:

Day Eighteen is another round of the previous day to get yourself familiar with the process.

Positive Goal How it made you feel

Day Nineteen:

Before you know it, you have a lot of achievements that you accomplish each day. You’ve learned
visualization, how to become hyper-focused, breaking negative patterns, creating new positive
patterns, repetition through writing and simulating your goals. That’s a lot in under a month! Nice
job! Next, spread a bit of that positivity around to your friends and loved ones. When goals and
aspirations are shared with other people, you become accountable for those goals and your brain
subconsciously works even harder to achieve them.

Day Twenty:

This next process is called the PEG method or Problem, Asset, Goal method.

After your concentration/visualization/writing/simulation objective, write down one small sub-goal

that will move you toward one of your simulated goals, asking yourself, "What's the mini-goal to
achieve this goal?" List as many mini-goals as you can. Then, list all the problems you face achieving
those goals and the positive assets that will help you accomplish those goals.

Example: You want to lose 25 pounds. The easiest way to do so is to break it into 5x5 mini-goals
per week. Five times Five is 25, right? Then list all of the assets and problems in a chart like this:

Mini Goal Assets Problems

5 Love Drinking Lemon Water Salads
5 Love Soup Travel For Work
5 Love Weight Lifting Schedule Too Hectic
5 Eating Gluten-Free Drink Too Much Soda
5 Kids Keep Me Active Gym Costs Too Much

Find one Asset and one Problem and swap them around. In this example, I’ve swapped drinking
soda for love for sparkling water. It may seem like a small change, but those small changes add up.
Eventually, you notice you’ve lost 5 pounds. Over 5 weeks, you’ve attained your main goal.
Day Twenty One:

Repeat the process from the previous day, crossing off yesterday's PEG mini-goal if you've
accomplished it. If not, consider making your mini-goal even simpler (something you can achieve
today), or moving to a different goal.

That’s it! Well done! Not only have you finished the 21-day challenge, but you’ve successfully
learned valuable, possibly-life changing processes to hack your mind. From learning how your mind
is continuously running and how to find the peace within that storm to acquiring laser-like focus
though simulating your goals. In the very end, you discovered a way to not only hack your mind, but
your life to achieve your goals.

Don’t ever stop moving forward! Even though this Challenge is 21 days long, the rewards of what
you learned will continue for years, if not your whole life. If ever you’ve forgotten what you’ve
learned just pick up this Challenge again – it’ll be right here waiting for you.