Blog
Belief vs. Knowing
Belief vs. Knowing: What Eddie Murphy Taught Me About the Mindset of Success
Have you ever noticed that some people are handed every advantage in life and still find a way to sabotage their own success? Meanwhile, others face one obstacle after another, yet they push forward with an unstoppable attitude and somehow enjoy the ride. So what separates the two groups? In my experience, it comes down to the difference between belief vs. knowing. One is a hope that you hold on to. The other is a certainty that holds on to you.
As a keynote speaker, former headline comedian and someone people call “The Mindset Adjuster,” I have spent decades studying why some people break through while others stall out. Over and over, I keep coming back to one simple truth. Your mindset writes the story of your life. With that in mind, let me tell you about a young comedian I once shared a stage with, and the one sentence he said that I have never forgotten.
Belief vs. Knowing: Understanding the Difference
Before I get to the story, let’s define our terms. Belief is when you think something is possible. You hope it will happen, and you are willing to work toward it. That is a great place to start. However, belief can still leave a little room for doubt, and doubt is sneaky. It whispers, “Maybe not you. Maybe not now.”
Knowing, on the other hand, is belief that has grown up. It is belief without a shadow of doubt. When you know something, you are not asking whether it will happen. Instead, you are simply waiting for the details to catch up with what you already see in your mind.
In other words, belief says, “I would like to.” Knowing says, “I am going to.” That might sound like a small difference in wording. In reality, it is a massive difference in results.
Your Thoughts Create the Blueprint
To understand why knowing is so powerful, we first need to look at how our thoughts work. People who are successful tend to have mostly optimistic thoughts about their health, wealth and abundance. Whether they are aware of it or not, they simply don’t allow thoughts of lack and failure to take root.
Now, that doesn’t mean successful people never have negative thoughts. We all do. Rather, it means they don’t let those thoughts move in, unpack their bags and start paying rent.
Have you ever noticed that people who constantly dwell on their ailments always seem to be sick? Similarly, people who talk about prosperity tend to be prosperous. People who talk about how wonderful life is are usually happy. And people who constantly talk about their cats? Well, that is a different story altogether.
The point is this. Your thoughts, added up over time, become a blueprint for how you respond to everything in your life. Whatever you habitually focus on tends to show up. So whatever you do, don’t spend your day focusing on getting hit by a train. That is not going to end well.
Belief vs. Knowing: My Eddie Murphy Story
With that foundation in place, let me take you back to a Saturday night in 1980. I was performing at the East Side Comedy Club on Long Island. At that point, I was fairly new to comedy, and this was my first weekend spot at a premier club. To say I was nervous would be an understatement.
Sharing the marquee with me was a young comic named Eddie Murphy. Yes, that Eddie Murphy.
Back then, I knew Eddie pretty well. We worked a lot of the same rooms together, including comedy clubs, bars, dance clubs and restaurants all over the tri-state area. Even though I was 13 years older than him, I could tell from the moment we met that there was something special about him. Besides being brilliantly funny and owning the stage, he had a level of confidence that was rare for someone who was barely 18.
After the first show that night, Eddie and I were sitting in the green room talking about what we wanted to do with our lives. At the time, I was an English teacher by day and a stand-up comedian by night. Honestly, some days it was hard to tell the difference between the two jobs. I told Eddie my dream was to break into the comedy business in a big way.
Then Eddie stood up, looked me right in the eye and said, “Steve, I’m going to be to comedy what the Beatles are to music.”
The Words That Revealed a Knowing Mindset
Notice what Eddie did not say. He didn’t say, “I would like to be.” He didn’t say, “My dream is to be.” Instead, he said, “I’m going to be.” He said it as a matter of fact.
Just as important, he wasn’t bragging. There was no ego and no conceit in his voice. His tone was calm and assertive, and the words came straight from his heart. In fact, he said it with such conviction and complete certainty that I had no choice but to believe him. It was as if he had a crystal ball and had already watched his life unfold.
That moment is the perfect illustration of belief vs. knowing. I believed in my dream. Eddie knew his future. As a result, he carried himself differently, he worked differently and he showed up differently.
Talent and Luck Are Not the Whole Story
Most people look at Eddie Murphy’s success and assume he became a star simply because he was talented. Others chalk it up to luck and being in the right place at the right time. Personally, I believe there was much more to it than that.
After all, I’m sure you know extraordinarily talented people who never reach the level of success they desire or deserve. You may even know a few personally. They seem to have everything it takes, yet for whatever reason, the lucky break never comes. So why does one talented person rise while another equally talented person stays stuck?
To answer that, let’s look at what happened next. Around that time, the original cast of Saturday Night Live had moved on, and producers were searching for a Black comedian with improv skills to join the new cast. A performer was chosen quickly, but things didn’t work out. Consequently, a more urgent casting call went out.
There were only a handful of Black comedians on the circuit at the time, and Eddie was one of them. Auditions were held at The Comic Strip in Manhattan. As the story goes, within minutes of Eddie stepping onto that stage, the decision makers knew they had found their newest prime time player.
We Make Our Own Luck
Now, you can call that luck if you want. I see it differently. I believe we make our own luck. In other words, what you think is what you get.
When you consistently create positive thoughts, focus your attention on what you want, take action with joy, passion and enthusiasm, and believe without a doubt that it is only a matter of time, the odds shift in your favor. More often than not, that is exactly what comes to pass.
For that reason, I want you to remember four key phrases:
- Creating positive thoughts. Guard your mind like it is your most valuable asset, because it is.
- Attention. Where your focus goes, your energy flows.
- Taking action with joy, passion and enthusiasm. Knowing without action is just daydreaming.
- Believing without a doubt. This is where belief becomes knowing.
I know what you’re thinking. “Steve, that’s easier said than done.” Well, guess what? Everything in life is easier said than done. The good news, however, is that it can be done.
Belief vs. Knowing: What I Saw Up Close
Because I spent so much time with Eddie, I got to see how he carried himself on and off the stage. We had many heartfelt conversations. His focus on his craft was laser sharp, his attitude never wavered and his passion was second to none. Moreover, he never drank or did drugs. Not once.
Instead, his high came from the joy of being on stage and making people laugh. As a fellow HUMOR BEING, I recognized that joy immediately. I truly believe Eddie radiated so much positive energy, and had such a deep subconscious certainty about who he was, that he attracted what most people would call lucky breaks. Of course, he also had the talent and the grit to take action when opportunity knocked.
Ultimately, what separated Eddie from other talented comedians was that he really, really wanted it. And he didn’t just believe it was possible. He knew it. When desire and knowing come together, they become unstoppable. Eddie always knew where he was headed before he got there. Above all, there was a constant connection between his intentions, his thoughts, his beliefs, his actions and what showed up in his life.
How to Move from Belief to Knowing in Business and Life
So how do you apply this lesson, whether you run a company, lead a team or are simply trying to build a better life? Here are a few practical ways to shift from belief to knowing.
Change your language. First, pay attention to how you talk about your goals. Replace “I hope,” “I’d like to” and “someday” with “I am” and “I will.” Words are the bridge between thought and action.
Act as if it’s already done. Next, ask yourself how the person who has already achieved your goal would behave today. How would they prepare for that sales call? How would they handle that difficult conversation? Then do that.
Feed your focus. In addition, be deliberate about what you read, watch and listen to. If you fill your mind with doubt, you will harvest doubt. If you fill it with possibility, you will harvest possibility.
Find the humor. Finally, don’t take every setback so seriously. Laughter breaks the grip of stress and fear, and it helps you see options you would otherwise miss. That is why I always say, it’s hard to stay stuck when you’re laughing.
The Bottom Line on Belief vs. Knowing
To sum it up, belief is a powerful starting point. Still, belief alone often leaves the door cracked open for fear and doubt to sneak in. Knowing closes that door. It turns “maybe” into “when,” and it changes the way you think, act and show up every single day.
Eddie Murphy didn’t hope to become a superstar. He knew it, and his actions lined up with that knowing until the world caught up. The same principle applies to you, your career and your business. Remember, mindset is everything. If you truly want to succeed in business and in life, stop asking whether it’s possible and start knowing that it’s on its way.
Now go out there and get your shift together!
Steve Rizzo, The Mindset Adjuster, is a Hall of Fame motivational keynote speaker and former national headline comedian who helps organizations shift their mindset from failure to success. Learn more at steverizzo.com.
