12/12/2025
Six months ago, I was sitting at my kitchen table, feeling profoundly stuck. I had goals, big, whisper-them-only-to-myself dreams but they felt locked behind a glass wall. I could see them, but I couldn’t touch them. My own mind was the barrier, a chaotic stream of “what ifs” and “not enoughs.” That’s when a friend, seeing my frustration, slid a copy of Sayra S. Montes’s “Train Your Mind to Be Successful” across that same table and said, “Stop trying to change your life. Start here.”
From the first chapter, I felt seen. This wasn’t another dry lecture on hustle culture. It felt like a compassionate, yet direct, coaching session. Montes writes with the warmth of a mentor who believes in you, paired with the precision of a strategist. Here’s the journey this book took me on, and the lessons that are now woven into my daily life.
1. Success Isn’t an Event, It’s an Ecosystem.
Montes immediately shifted my perspective. Success isn’t a distant finish line you sprint toward; it’s a personal ecosystem you cultivate within your own mind. She taught me that before you can attract anything external, the job, the relationship, the peace, you must first build the internal landscape where those things can thrive. The book became my guide to tending that inner garden, pulling the weeds of self-doubt and planting seeds of purposeful thought.
2. The “Mental Workout” – Your Most Important Daily Ritual.
The core brilliance of this book is in its title: Train Your Mind. Montes presents actionable strategies not as tips, but as non-negotiable reps in a mental workout. I started her signature practices:
• The “Success Visualization” session: Not just fleeting daydreams, but detailed, sensory-rich mental rehearsals where I feel the confidence of nailing a presentation or the joy of a goal achieved.
• Conscious Affirmation Crafting: Moving beyond generic “I am prosperous” statements to crafting powerful, present-tense declarations that directly counter my specific doubts (“I am a clear and compelling communicator,” became mine).
Doing these daily didn’t feel like homework; it felt like building my mental immune system.
3. Your Subconscious Isn’t Your Enemy, It’s Your Most Powerful Ally.
This was my biggest “aha” moment. I used to see my subconscious as a dark basement holding my fears. Montes reframed it as the ultimate goal-oriented software, always working to bring your dominant thoughts to life. The problem wasn’t the software; it was the buggy, negative code I’d been inputting for years. The lessons on how to “reprogram” it—through repetition, emotionalized vision, and consistent self-talk, were nothing short of revolutionary. I learned to stop fighting my mind and start partnering with it.
4. Clarity is the Magnet.
You can’t attract “anything you want” if “anything” is a vague, shapeless idea. Montes drills down on the vital work of radical clarity. The book guided me through exercises to define not just what I wanted, but why I wanted it, how it would feel, and the person I would need to become to achieve it. This clarity acted like a tuning fork, aligning my thoughts, actions, and opportunities in a way that felt synchronistic. Opportunities didn’t just “luckily” appear; I was finally mentally prepared to see and seize them.
“Train Your Mind to Be Successful” is now a worn, annotated companion on my shelf. It’s not a magical incantation; it’s a practical operator’s manual for your own potential. Sayra S. Montes delivers a powerful, compassionate, and profoundly useful framework for anyone ready to move from wishing to creating.
If you’re tired of circling the runway of your own dreams, this book provides the mental clearance to finally land and build. It taught me that the most important thing I will ever attract is the version of myself capable of having it all. And that journey starts with a single, well-trained thought.
