In our three previous articles in this blog, we’ve picked a goal you wanted to achieve. You’ve defined your goal in detail. You’ve imagined how achieving this goal will feel and the positive effects it will have on your life. And you found and disproved the old beliefs you held in the past that prevented you from achieving things.
In the last article on that, we looked at ways of acting and thinking in a more positive way. Every minute of every day, this is a choice that’s open to us, no matter what is going on. In life, the “glass” is very rarely completely full or completely empty, but somewhere in between.
Some people focus and concentrate on the empty half and suffer the feelings and experiences of that pessimistic view of life. Others choose to look at the full half, all the positive things in their lives. As a result they feel stronger, more positive and they’re happier! Like many clever and powerful things, this fact is right under our noses, so obvious that we often miss it!
Think about it for a moment. If you got up one morning and someone sat you down to point out all the things your life lacked, reminded you of past disappointments, pointed out your limitations and went on and on about how hard things are, would that set you up nicely for a happy and productive day? I don’t think so. Yet many of us do this to ourselves all day, every day!
Now for a moment, as the cliché goes, count your blessings. Count the good people you know, even if they are only people you meet socially. Focus on the things that you are good at. Choose to concentrate on what you have, the good things you’ve done or achieved already in your life, happy memories, ways in which you are lucky, your dreams and ambitions.
If you do this properly, having the mental discipline for a few minutes to keep negative thoughts out and prevent them from spoiling things, notice how your whole mood lifts and lightens, how much more positive you feel, how you even breathe deeper and easier.
The more often you do this, the more often you’ll feel this way. The more often you practice it, the easier it becomes, until, like anything else we practice, it becomes automatic. It is so easy to change how you feel if you, literally, put your mind to it. People resort to drugs (prescription and illegal, tobacco and alcohol) to achieve a change in how they feel. This is a free, harmless and natural way of doing the same thing.
Could the instructions be any simpler? Is this really something that is beyond you? All you need is the will to set aside some time every day, take a moment where you can relax and call up thoughts of the glass half full. Also, list five good things about yourself. Do not quit until you have completed this list. With each day you do this, the list will become easier to make and longer!
We are still on course for achieving your goal. But like a physical challenge, we are getting ourselves in good shape first, mentally fit, if you like. When you are in better shape everything is easier, including getting on with your project.