The untapped value in mastering your Inner Game

Contributed by Dhiren Harchandani (EO UAE), a Transformational Architect who helps entrepreneurs crush roadblocks to get more of what they want, by Mastering their Inner Game. We asked Dhiren how entrepreneurs can master their Inner Game. Here’s what he shared: 

Have you ever made business decisions that adversely affected your relationships and health? Do you know how it feels to have your energy completely drained while your competitors grow past you? If you’re an entrepreneur, these scenarios are all too familiar.

A few years ago, I experienced a colossal burnout. 

I know how it feels to be physically present with those you love but emotionally absent. And I know what it feels like to be at the end of my rope, feeling like an imposter in my own body.

But all that dramatically changed when I discovered the Inner Game.

There are many lies we tell ourselves as entrepreneurs. You think if you could work harder or play the game smarter, you will have better business success. While that may be true in the short term, it’s far from sustainable.

I liken it to tuning different parts of a race car for better performance without paying attention to the engine. It doesn’t make sense, but the reality is that is exactly what we do—we hire better staff, automate certain processes, and the list goes on. 

Sadly, entrepreneurs often forget to work on themselves and the core that drives their beliefs.  

“The business behind an entrepreneurs’ business is their Inner Game.”

—Dhiren Harchandani

Ever since I discovered the Inner Game and started going deeper in embedding it in my life and business, I’ve performed at a level I’ve never been able to access in the past.

What in the world is the Inner Game?

Simply put, your Inner Game is the conversation you’re having with yourself. 

It’s your belief structures, self-esteem, confidence—and the constant chatter in your head. It’s what happens within you.

But why is the Inner Game so important? Well, not mastering the Inner Game may lead to an endless pattern of self-sabotaging your success, which will lead to a depletion of your willpower and energy. 

You will continually feel stuck in the process and not know how or where to start or pause.

You can transform your life and business by consciously taking control of your Inner Game. This could be the hard reset you so badly need. 

Mastering your Inner Game and taking your business to the next level requires that you take your thoughts, self-image and self-esteem to the next level.

The Inner Game: Unlocking your next level

CEOs and entrepreneurs often ask me why they need to work on limiting beliefs, unprocessed emotions, anxiety and self-doubt. As an entrepreneur and coach, I have experienced first-hand (and through my clients) that your mindset as an entrepreneur/CEO is essential. 

In fact, it is more essential than corporate culture, strategy or any market-driven force. Much like in sports, what separates champions from others is their ability to focus on and master their Inner Game. 

“Believe in yourself to the point of delusion.”

– Dhiren Harchandani

The Inner Game is the only sustainable competitive advantage. Everything else can be replicated and diminishes over time. If you focus on your Inner Game, you can make the greatest impact on your business. What every entrepreneur wants is the ability to make the greatest impact.

The trap is that they try to make many changes at once, and inevitably, none of the changes stick.

I’ve observed that the highest leverage and change that needs to be made is with the Inner Game FIRST, and then watch every other aspect of your life begin to fall in place.  

I’ve developed a system made up of a series of interventions for Inner Game mastery. Each intervention in itself unlocks tremendous value instantly.

Here’s one of the pillars to Mastering Your Inner Game that I would like you to master, I call it: 

My 1 Decision That Solves 50 Problems

Let me explain.

I’ve observed that when entrepreneurs are not getting things done effectively, there is some area of their life that is totally messed up.  

I’ve also observed that at any given point in time in our lives, we have anywhere between 40 to 50 problems, from small ones all the way to big ones; some we are conscious of, while some we’re not.

As entrepreneurs, when we’re faced with adversity in life and business, our tendency is to take on too much. We end up making several changes in business or lifestyle all at once. We try to do it all, and in the process, we get nothing done.

In my coaching practice, I have observed that there is one decision you can make in your life right now! And you’re probably already aware of it, but maybe you’ve been holding back on making that decision.

But the reality is, that one single decision is going to solve a majority of the problems you’re currently facing.

I like to use the metaphor of hinges to describe this mindset. Hinges—the mechanisms that hold doors in place—are a fraction of the size and weight of the doors they support, but these small mechanisms carry a lot of leverage. The metaphor is that small hinges swing big doors.

Let me give you an example: When you’ve made a bad hire in your business, the impact of this one decision ripples across all areas of the business, not to mention your mindset, which can then create a number of additional problems.

The one decision you can make that solves 50 problems is all about the power of one. It’s all about unlocking major leverage:

• You can have and grow successful businesses without experiencing burnout or losing yourself in the process. 
• You can gain the clarity needed to scale and maintain your business. 
• You can achieve everything you ever want to achieve, and more!  

By mastering the Inner Game, winning the Outer Game becomes inevitable.