Create Internal Change And Live A Happier Working Mom Life In 4 Easy Steps

How is it that some working moms are happy regardless of their life circumstances while others are incessantly miserable though they appear to "have it all"? How you feel and the results you attain are attributable to the intentionality of your thoughts and your actions. Your level of joy, contentment, and well-being is the reality that you control and create by the thoughts you choose to embrace. In this article I will share 4 strategies that, if implemented, will have a profound impact on your level of happiness and will change your life for good.

Step 1: Focus on what you can control and eliminate the rest.

What is holding you back from living your BEST life as a working mom? I encourage you to identify each of the factors that you feel may be contributing to a less than desirable life. Once you have made your list, ask yourself a question about each item: Is this something within my control? If your answer is "yes", then it is time to make some positive changes. If your answer is "no", let it go and move forward. The bottom line is that you cannot change what is outside of your control (e.g., everything besides what you think, how you feel, and how you behave).

Step 2: Become aware of your thoughts.

The Law of Attraction suggests that thoughts are things and your thoughts create your world. Whether you focus on positive or negative thoughts is your choice. However, whichever you choose will determine the outcome of your day, your week, your month, your year, and ultimately your life.

Your inner happiness is governed by your thoughts and what you tell yourself. Did you know that on average we have 40,000-50,000 thoughts per day and 80-90% of those thoughts are negative? Oftentimes we are on auto-pilot, not conscious of our thoughts, and simply going through the motions of the day. In order to increase your happiness and change your life, it is essential that you become aware of your thoughts and what you are telling yourself.

Have you ever caught yourself in a certain emotional state of being (e.g., happy, sad, frustrated, etc.) and you cannot pin-point what happened or why you are feeling the way you do? When you find this to be true for you, take a moment to stop and intentionally assess what you are thinking. Do those thoughts serve you on your way to living your best life?

Step 3: Turn off the negative self-talk.

One way to stop the negative self-talk is to utilize a technique called "thought stopping". Once you become aware that you are engaging in negative thinking, you literally will tell yourself to "Stop". You can either say it out loud (be prepared for some surprised glances if you are in public) or say it quietly to yourself (probably a better idea when you are at work).

Step 4: Engage in the power of positive thinking.

Immediately after you have told yourself to stop the negative chatter, you will replace that thought with a positive affirmation or mantra. There are two affirmations that I regularly use that assists me in completely altering my perspective.

The first is, "Everything happens for a reason". I repeat this mantra in response to a situation that is outside of my control and has left me feeling discouraged or upset (e.g., getting passed over for a promotion or an annual family vacation that has to be cancelled due to a sick child).

Another mantra that I hold near and dear to my heart is, "There are no mistakes, only lessons". This is very helpful when I am verbally beating myself up over a choice that I made or an action that I took (e.g., sending an email to your entire department that was intended for your supervisor's eyes only or forgetting to pick up the dry cleaning on your way home from work and your hubby is without dress shirts). What is done is done and there is not a thing you can do to retrieve this moment in time from the past or "redo" the scenario. What you can do; however, is learn from the experience and make a plan of action to ensure it does not happen again.

Remember, you are in control of how you experience life. Do you want to live a life of happiness, joy, abundance, prosperity, and success? Or, would you rather live a life full of worry, regret, resentment, unhappiness, and hopelessness? The choice is up to you, your thoughts, your emotions, and your behaviors. What will you choose?

I leave you with my favorite quote and one that guides me each and every day! I am hopeful that it will become a source of inspiration for you as well!

"The longer I live, the more I realize the impact of attitude on life. Attitude, to me, is more important than facts. It is more important than the past, than education, than money, than circumstances, than failure, than successes, than what other people think or say or do. It is more important than appearance, giftedness or skill. It will make or break a company... a church... a home.

The remarkable thing is we have a choice everyday regarding the attitude we will embrace. We cannot change our past... we cannot change the fact that people will act in a certain way. We cannot change the inevitable. The only thing we can do is play on the one string we have, and that is our attitude.

I am convinced that life is 10% what happens to us and 90% of how we react to it. And so it is with you...you are in charge of your attitude. Attitude IS Everything!"

-Charles R. Swindoll