I distinctly remember the first time I heard someone tell me that I was the owner of my thoughts. That little piece of information hit me like a ton of bricks AND it has helped me completely transform my life.
Who knew that every day, every moment and in every instance, I get to choose the thoughts in my head? What a revelation, right? Nobody else in the entire universe can tell me what to think, EVER!
So, why was I telling myself such horrible stories and calling myself despicable names?
I don’t know, and the truth is that even with the knowing that your thoughts are your own, it still takes a lot of work to change them. The good news is – it can be done! I know because I no longer tell myself horror stories or call myself horrible names.
Okay…I admit – there are definitely occasions when those old, nasty thoughts creep back in and try to take over. I’m human, right? I have an ego and that’s exactly where the problem lies…with the ego.
Fortunately, my awareness is uber-heightened now – so much so that I can catch myself going to that place in an instant. Before I did the work to get to this place, I would go days, weeks, months – even years thinking thoughts that were not true and certainly were not serving me.
So, how did I get to this more peaceful, blissful place?
I’ll give you the 2-step version.
Step 1: Start taking note of the negative thoughts in your head. Catch them as soon as they surface. This is where you practice awareness. Many of us don’t even know how destructive our thoughts are, so this piece can take a little time and might even scare you when you really start paying attention to the things you tell yourself.
Once you catch the thought, don’t judge it…just acknowledge it. There’s no point in you judging yourself – afterall you’re trying to lift yourself here.
You might want to write down this thought. By capturing it on paper, it will allow you to do the next step with more ease.
Step 2: Explore the various ways you can reframe the thought into something that serves you well. For example, let’s say you catch yourself saying something like, “I’m never going to lose weight.” Well, odds are that if you keep telling yourself that – your wish will come true. So, here’s a great opportunity to reframe this negative thought. You could replace it with, “My body releases extra weight every day” or “Every day I nourish my body with healthy food” or “I am happy letting go of this extra weight.”
The point here is to find something to tell yourself that feels really good and right. So, every time you catch yourself saying, “I’m never going to lose weight.” You acknowledge the thought and then let it go by replacing it with your new healthy thought, “I am happy letting go of this extra weight.” Or whatever it is that you CHOOSE to say.
You see, it really is your choice. Why not have fun with your thoughts and tell yourself how amazing you are, how awesome life is, how happy you are, how great this day is, how beautiful you are, etc.
BUT, there’s a catch…
The more you tell yourself uplifting, positive things – the MORE THEY COME TRUE!
Really…it’s the truth ☺
So, decide right now – which thought you want to think – the icky, ugly, despicable one or the amazing, pleasant, inspiring one? You choose…
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