The quality of our thoughts determines the quality of our life! Positive and empowering thoughts, emotions, and feelings create energy in our body that makes us happy and joyous. Negative and disempowering thoughts, on the other hand, create inertia and force us to stay stuck! A simple change in perspective can make a world of difference.
You don’t need to force yourself to make deep inner changes. You can choose to change your thoughts, beliefs and perspective to something more useful that empowers you. Here’s how you can train your mind and give a positive direction to your life:
Accept responsibility for your life and regain control – There’s a comfort that comes from having an excuse for your challenges in life. Whether you blame your issues on poor parenting, a boss that hates you, a negative spouse, or the universe in general, it’s soothing to have an excuse. However, that excuse comes at a cost. By putting the blame and responsibility outside of yourself, you take away your power to change your situation.
Does this mean everything is your fault? Of course, not! But it is your responsibility. If you don’t fix it, who will? If you choose to see everything in your life as your responsibility and start making some changes, you will eventually enjoy the power that comes with responsibility.
Examine your current beliefs and choose those that empower you – Your beliefs are like your software. If your software is faulty, you aren’t operating efficiently. Examine each belief you have and determine if it is serving you or holding you back. Look at your behaviour for clues regarding your internal thought processes. What must you believe to be behaving the way you do? Now question the belief to see if it’s really true!
For example, if you believe that you are not loved, you are bound to become extremely sensitive around people. In this state, you are more likely to take everything that’s been said, very personally. To avoid hurting you, people will eventually distance them from you. This will further strengthen the belief that you are not loved. The cycle will then repeat itself and suck you into a downward emotional spiral as a result.
On the other hand, if you believe that you are loved by everyone, you will be a delight to hang around with, and as a result, attract tons of loving people into your life. This will enable you to stay in higher energy vibrations of peace, joy and love.
Break the cycle of negative thinking – Each time you find yourself having a negative thought, change it to something positive. A great way to do that is to acknowledge and appreciate what you already have. This is not to suggest that you should not aspire for more. Enjoy whatever amount of success you have achieved, instead of feeling sad about what you have not been able to achieve. There is nothing wrong in pushing yourself toward higher results, but failure to reach them should not destroy your pleasure of what you have created on the way. Turn each failure into a learning experience and use it to grow yourself.
Focus on what you want, not what you don't want – When we are thinking thoughts that are rooted in fear, self-doubt, worry, criticism, judgment, anger, frustration, and anxiety; we are not focused on what we want to create in our lives. When all we think about in our current situation, we get more of the same. Spend some time each day visualising the results you want to create in your life. This clarity will give you the power to propel forward in the desired direction.
Learn how to manage your moods. When you feel a mood swing beginning, take a moment to pause, breathe deeply and focus. Center your attention on something in the present, such as the sound of your breathing. By focusing your attention on something sensory you can take your mind away from negative thoughts and feelings. If you feel overpowered during a mood swing and tend to lose rationality, sit down afterward and really think about what happened. Journal all your thoughts, feelings and emotions of what you feel about the situation. Then examine the event that changed your mood in relation to your reaction, and come up with a positive way of responding to the same situation, if it were to repeat in the future.
Inner changes can be challenging, but they are under your control. As your inner world changes, your behaviour will change. As your behaviour changes, your outer world will change too. Try it!
*Disclaimer: The article has been contributed by Nidhika Bahl, Author & Celebrity Life Coach. The opinions expressed in the article are the personal opinions of the author. The facts and views appearing in this article do not reflect the views of Deccan Chroncile and Deccan Chronicle does not assume any responsibility and liability for the same.
