The Key Role Thoughts Play In Your Life

We all know what thoughts are. Even as you are reading this article, your mind is busy making sense of these words, processing information, concocting images, and perhaps even anticipating what the next sentence or paragraph will state. What many people don't realize, however, is the major impact that thoughts have in every decision in our lives and our states of mind. Thoughts and emotions are often created unconsciously outside of our awareness. By becoming more vigilant of our thoughts, we can learn from them. We all have the ability to take control of our thoughts in order to achieve whatever we want to achieve in our lives by working at it.

All of us have probably heard the phrase "think positive". This is very sage advice, but it falls on deaf ears when one is so used to a negative style of thinking that it becomes part of his/her lifestyle. Many people say things like "I can't help it, that's just the way I am." I am here to tell you that you can help it, and there are many different methods of implementing positive thinking into your lifestyle. You must have or create a desire to improve yourself, however, if you expect to succeed. One cannot expect to just "try positive thinking on for size" and expect to be immediately cured of the negative pattern of thinking. You must be dedicated on improving yourself and work diligently to do the necessary work in order to reap the benefits. Two methods I will discuss are reframing negative to positive thoughts by writing them on paper and listening to recorded positive affirmations.

By writing your thoughts on paper, you get a better visualization of the thoughts you are having. For instance, how many of us feel down when it rains? Most of us would prefer a sunny day over a rainy day, but we can all learn to accept rainy days and even learn to enjoy the rain. After all, rain is a natural part of this planet and without it, our crops wouldn't grow, our water supply would diminish, etc. An example of negative thoughts regarding rain may go something like "Oh no, it's raining today. I hate the rain. It makes me feel down and gloomy." In order to combat this thought into a more positive outlook, you could write "Rain is a natural part of the system. There is always a lovely smell in the air right before it starts raining, and it makes pleasant, melodic sounds." At first, you may not believe these more positive statements, but the more you do it, the more it will sink in your head and you will actually start to reprogram your brain. The key is to be specific. You should not write something like "rain stinks" and then combat it with "it's ok". These statements are too vague to have a big impact. Keep in mind that nothing can make you feel a certain way, it is all about your choice in how you perceive so-called negative events. Sure there are things that can trigger these negative thoughts and emotions, but we are ultimately the ones who make ourselves feel certain ways. No one else or no specific event can make us feel certain ways unless we allow it. First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt stated, "No one can make you feel inferior without your consent." Like I stated earlier, many of our thoughts and emotions are created unconsciously. Something "bad" happens, we feel negative. Something "good" happens, we feel positive. With continued practice, we can become more aware of these thought processes and choose to feel the way we want. There are literally thousands of books that give you more in depth views of challenging your thoughts. Two books that I recommend are "Mind Over Mood" by Dennis Greenberger, PhD and Christine A. Padesky, PhD and "How to Stubbornly Refuse to Make Yourself Miserable About Anything--Yes, Anything" by Albert Ellis, PhD. these books offer great insights about your thoughts and teach you how to overcome your negative style of thinking and replace it with a more positive outlook.

Another method of implementing positive thoughts in your brain is by listening to recorded affirmations. Affirmations are thoughts that we are constantly saying to ourselves throughout the day which reinforces what we believe to be true. How can someone expect to feel good about himself/herself if he/she is constantly thinking thoughts such as "I am a loser or I am no good at life"? By exposing yourself to prerecorded positive affirmations, you are retraining your brain to think in a more positive manner. An example of a positive affirmation would go something like "I always perform to the best of my ability". If you are the type of person that usually gives only a half-hearted attempt to your tasks, you may just laugh at this affirmation and feel like you are lying to yourself. But just like the first method I discussed, by continued exposure to thoughts like these, you begin to reprogram your brain to make the positive affirmations true for yourself and naturally begin to act in ways which reinforce these thoughts. There are thousands of books which teach you how to use affirmations effectively. One such book I recommend is "What To Say When You Talk To Yourself" by Shad Helmstetter, PhD. He gives you ideas for affirmations dealing with a wide variety of topics that you would like to improve about yourself. There is also a company called "Think Right Now" which offers pre-recorded affirmation cassettes and CDs. This company covers topics such as self esteem, happiness, quitting smoking, motivation, and many others. Their website is www.thinkrightnow.com.

Remember, challenging your current belief system and changing the way you think and feel will take some time. You created and reinforced this belief system over many years, mostly unconsciously and most likely didn't know any better. This will take some time to change so be patient with yourself and the process., and cut yourself some slack if you don't change right away. Just keep on keeping on and things will eventually fall into place.