Who Controls Your Mind?
Few people are aware of the thoughts that pass through their minds. Thinking is performed like a habit, in an automatic manner. If the thoughts are positive, then it is all right, but if they are negative, they may cause trouble.
The mind is like small child, who accepts and takes for granted whatever it sees or hears, without judgment and without considering the consequences. If you let your mind behave as it likes and give it complete freedom, you lose your freedom.
We are constantly flooded with thoughts, ideas and information coming through the five senses, other people, the newspapers and TV. These thoughts, ideas and information penetrate the mind whether we are aware of this process or not.
This outside flow influences our behavior and reactions. It influences the way we think, our preferences, likes and dislikes. This means that we let outside powers shape our lives. So where is freedom?
Most people think and believe that their thoughts originate from them, but have they ever stopped and considered whether their thoughts, desires, likes and dislikes are really theirs? Maybe they have come from the outside, and they have unconsciously accepted them as their own?
If there is no filter to process the thoughts that enter the mind, there is no freedom. Then all actions are like the actions of a puppet on a string, though no one will admit it.
You may object and say that the thoughts that pass through your mind are yours, but are they? Have you deliberately and attentively created every thought that entered your mind?
Why let outside influences control your mind and life? Why let other people's thoughts control your life and mind? Do you want to make your mind free or do you prefer to enslave it to other people's opinions and thoughts? If you leave your mind open to every thought that passes by, you put our life in other people's hands, and without realizing it, you accept their thoughts and act in accordance with them.
Each person is more susceptible to certain kind of thoughts than others. Certain thoughts and ideas we ignore, and others spur us to immediate action. Thoughts concerning subjects we love have more power on us than other thoughts, but even thoughts and ideas that we don't care about, if we are frequently exposed to them, eventually sink into the subconscious mind and influence us.
Everyone has desires, ambitions and dreams that he or she may foster from childhood. They may be the thoughts of parents, teachers and friends, and which have lodged into our minds, and are carried around throughout our lives. Are they necessary? Do we need all this excessive baggage?
In order to reduce the power of outside influences and thoughts on your life, you need to be aware of the thoughts and desires that enter your mind, and ask yourself whether you really like them, and are willing to accept them into your life. Analyze your motives and actions, and you will be surprised to find out that many of them were triggered by outside influences.
You do not have to accept each and every thought, idea or information. Think and find out whether you entertain certain thoughts because you decided to do so, or because they just popped into your head due to outside influences.
Learn not to accept every thought that you encounter. Find first whether it is for your own good to follow it. It may not be so easy at the start, because the mind will revolt against this control. If you want to be the master of your mind and life, you should not let other people's thoughts, desires and motives rule your life, unless you consciously choose so.
© Copyright Remez Sasson
Remez Sasson teaches and writes on positive thinking, creative visualization, motivation, self-improvement, peace of mind, spiritual growth and meditation. He is the author of several books, among which are "Peace of mind in Daily Life", "Will Power and Self Discipline", "Visualize and Achieve" and "Affirmations - Words of Power".
Visit his website and find articles and books filled with inspiration, motivation and practical advice and guidance.
Website: http://www.SuccessConsciousness.com
Books: http://www.successconsciousness.com/ebooks_and_books.htm
Learning How To Overcome Self-sabotage
It's easy to forget just how powerful our subconscious minds can be. We are often completely unaware of how our actions (or inactions) are affecting our lives. We may complain that things never work out for us, we have bad luck, or we just don't have what it takes to be successful. What we fail to realize is that we are actually creating our own circumstances through subconscious self-sabotage. In order to overcome self-sabotage we first have to use conscious awareness to explore our emotions and fears, and understand how they influence our actions. Once we have determined the cause of the destructive behavior, we can then take steps to prevent it from happening in the future.
What's really happening when we sabotage ourselves? Subconsciously, we may be frightened by a particular outcome, even though we say we want it. Take, for example, losing weight. Many overweight people have struggled for years, tried diet after diet, and still can't lose the weight (or keep it off). They berate themselves, push themselves harder, and try to force the weight off. But what's happening beneath the surface? Do they really want to lose their excess pounds? They may say they do, but what if their layers of fat are providing a sense of protection and security in an uncertain world? What if they feel the need to cover up and conceal themselves? Losing weight then becomes a threatening, frightening possibility. So they might sabotage their diet efforts in order to avoid feeling too vulnerable and exposed. Even though they say they want to lose weight (and even believe they do) they still might set themselves up for failure by sneaking food, skipping exercise, and then making a promise that they'll try harder tomorrow.
Others may be intimidated by something as simple as starting a new job. Did you know that there are a surprisingly high number of people who don’t show up for job interviews, even for highly-desirable positions? Let's look at another example: Perhaps a stay-at-home-mom decides she needs to return to the workforce to earn money for her family. What she really wants is to stay home with her children, but she feels obligated to get a job outside the home. So instead of applying for the perfect position, she applies for jobs that she knows she's not qualified for, or jobs that require hours incompatible with her family's schedule so she has to turn down the job if it's offered. Subconsciously, that's her way of ensuring she won’t have to leave home, and at least she can say she "tried" to get a job.
Those who self-sabotage may also be afraid of what others will think of them should they accomplish their goals. They might not believe they're worthy of the outcome, so they act in ways that will ensure their failure.
These destructive efforts are done subconsciously, so even the saboteurs have fooled themselves into thinking they know what they want. If there is any uncertainty in their mind, any doubt, any fear, they will find a way to make sure it doesn't happen.
Perhaps this describes you? Have you sabotaged yourself in the past? Are you still doing it now? Are you not able to move forward with your goals, no matter how hard you try?
Fortunately we CAN overcome self-sabotage. The most important step to stopping self-sabotaging behavior is to recognize that it's happening. We must develop a conscious awareness of our thoughts, emotions, and actions.
If you've been struggling with a certain goal and things just don't seem to be working out for you, take a look at the setbacks that were encountered and evaluate the situation. Could any of the obstacles have been avoided by making wiser choices on your part? Are there a significantly high number of obstacles that have arisen for this one particular goal? If so, you may be self-sabotaging yourself.
A great way to get in touch with your subconscious mind is by spending time in quiet meditation. Ask yourself what you're afraid of. What fears do you have? What uncertainties? What makes you feel uncomfortable about this goal? For what reasons would you try to hold yourself back? Using a journal to write these questions and answers can help too, because writing can help you to connect with the deepest part of yourself. It might take time and practice, but exploring these possibilities can dramatically help you to get out of the self-sabotage rut.
When we finally understand that we are in control of our own success, we will be set free from all limitations! By developing clarity and insight about the outcomes we want to create, and the awareness for potential setbacks, we can stop the self-sabotage and focus our energies on working toward new goals that we will fully support in every way. We will then look back one day and see that instead of being our own worst saboteur, we have become our best supporter.
By: Wendy Betterini
Source: http://www.articledashboard.com
Wendy Betterini is a freelance writer who strives to motivate, uplift, and inspire you to make your dreams a reality. Visit her website, www.WingsForTheHeart.com for more positive thoughts to help you on your journey.
Creative Visualization and Letting Go
Almost every writer about creative visualization advises to visualize for only a few minutes, preferably several times a day, and then to let go, and forget your mental image until the next time. They say that of you don't do so, what you visualize will not materialize.
What is the rationale behind this idea? Why not visualize for half an hour or whenever you have the time? Isn't it more reasonable to believe that more time devoted to visualization will bring faster results?
If you are able to concentrate easily, and to hold away unwanted thoughts, for as long as you wish, then it is okay if you visualize for longer periods. The fact is that most people do not have control over their minds. They cannot hold their minds on one single thought more than a few moments, before other thoughts come. If they think about a particular goal, soon contradictory thoughts pop up, and negative thoughts start storming the mind, neutralizing any previous positive thoughts.
Most people have doubts and little faith, when thinking about goals and ambitions. Their minds are inclined to negative thinking and worrying. After a little time of positive visualization, doubts and lack of belief rise and sabotage their efforts. Impatience also rises, because they find it difficult to focus their minds on one thought.
All this means that if you focus your mind on a certain goal for too long, at a certain point you will unconsciously begin to repel and push it away, and consequently accomplish nothing.
Your predominant thoughts and mental attitude rule and interfere with whatever you think about. You may be able to disregard them and think positively for a few minutes, but after a little while they win. This is why it is advisable to start with short periods of visualizing your goals, until you gradually change your mental attitude. If you are able, through various methods, to adopt a predominant positive attitude, and also develop patience and the ability to concentrate, then you will be able to visualize effectively for longer periods.
There is another reason why it is advised not to constantly think about your goal. By freeing your conscious mind from excessive thinking, you make it easier for information, intuition, ideas, inspiration and motivation to pass from the subconscious mind to the conscious mind. This also enables the conscious mind to be more aware of any opportunity that pops up, and allows your subconscious mind to motivate you to take action, and to make the necessary effort to achieve your goals.
It is important to add that if your desire is really strong, you will carry it in the back of your head, even if you don't consciously think about it.
© Copyright Remez Sasson
Remez Sasson teaches and writes on positive thinking, creative visualization, motivation, self-improvement, peace of mind, spiritual growth and meditation. He is the author of several books, among which are "Peace of mind in Daily Life", "Will Power and Self Discipline", "Visualize and Achieve" and "Affirmations - Words of Power".
Visit his website and find articles and books filled with inspiration, motivation and practical advice and guidance.
Website: http://www.SuccessConsciousness.com
Books: http://www.successconsciousness.com/ebooks_and_books.htm
The Value of Thinking and Feeling Positive
Thinking and emotion go hand in hand. A negative mood activates negative thinking and a positive mood calls forth positive thinking. Does it matter if you are in a negative mood thinking negative thoughts or in a positive mood thinking positive thoughts? Is one better than the other? Is there value in thinking and feeling positive?
Emotions Have Evolutionary Value
Negative emotions have evolutionary value. Negative emotions like fear, loss, and aggression activate the flight or fight response. When we experience negative emotions, we have a feeling of aversion, which sets us on course to identify what is wrong and eliminate it. Negative emotions and thinking are associated with a survival alert that activates a reaction to fight, flight or conserve - each reaction with obvious evolutionary value.
Positive emotions also have evolutionary advantage. They "broaden and build." Experiencing positive emotions increases our survival chances because positive emotions broaden our intellectual, physical, and social resources and build reserves for us to draw upon.
Experiencing positive emotions increases our drive for exploration and discovery and provides the basis for positive social interactions. When we experience positive emotions, we become more tolerant, expansive, and creative. The more positive emotion we experience the more open to new ideas and new experiences we become.
Negative emotions narrow our perspective to focus only on the immediate threat. When negative emotions are experienced, we withdraw, freeze, or protect. As we experience positive emotions, we feel safe and engage in active, playful exploration, and discovery. Negative emotions contract and positive emotions expand.
Positive emotions form the experiential foundation for mentally healthy people. Positive emotions provide a foundation for growth and exploration and build the intellectual, social, and physical capital for further growth and development.
When we experience negative emotions, they tell us to deal with what is wrong and eliminate it. When we experience positive emotions, we start looking for the virtues of what is happening. We become constructive, generous, un-defensive, and open to seeing possibilities.
Experiencing positive emotions gives us an entirely different way of thinking from a negative mood. A negative mood makes us attentive to threats in our environment and focuses our thoughts on protection. A positive mood moves us into thoughts about growth and development, exploration and discovery.
Positive Emotions Build Resources and Capital for the Future
Positive emotions build the resources and capital that will become the basis for growth and development in years to come. When we feel and think positive, we reach outward and broaden our resources through exploration and discovery. We are more creative, think quicker, and do not succumb to premature closure or other forms of superficial intellectual processing.
Depressed people experience what is called a "downward spiral" of negative emotions. Depressed emotions call forth negative memories that feed more negative thoughts, that feed more negative memories, that feed more depressed emotions. Breaking this downward spiral is crucial to stopping the depression.
Psychologists have found what they call an upward spiral of positive emotion. Positive emotions produce a different way of thinking and acting. The thinking becomes creative and broad-minded, and the actions become adventurous and exploratory. This increased creativity and exploration results in greater expansion.
Often negative emotions and thinking are taken more seriously because traditionally they have been believed to be the evolutionary backbone of human motivation. It was believed that people are motivated primarily to avoid experiencing negative emotions and that positive motivation was merely superficial.
But positive emotions are just as real, authentic and important as negative emotions and are equally important for development, growth, and success.
Positive Emotions Lead to More Successful Interactions in the World
Experiencing more positive emotion results in more friendships, stronger love, better physical health, and more successful interactions in the world accompanied by a sense of mastery. Growth, positive development, and creative and successful interactions in the world (i.e. mental health) may have their foundations in the experience of positive emotions and thinking.
Happy people tend to view themselves subjectively as more successful in the world. Happy people remember more good events than actually happened and forget more of the bad events that happened Happy people see success as lasting, personal and pervasive and failure as impersonal, temporary and specific. Happy people may lose a bit of realism but this does not lock them into ineffective functioning. Happy people are more likely to switch tactics when involved in a task that appears to be failing. In the normal course of events, happy people rely on their tried and true positive past experiences while less happy people are more skeptical. However, when events are threatening, happy people, more readily than less happy people, switch tactics and adopt a skeptical and analytical frame of mind. Happy people can deal better with adversity.
Happier people are markedly more satisfied with their jobs than less happy people. Happiness inceases productivity and results in higher income. Happiness also makes gainful employment and higher income more likely. Both adults and children who are in a good mood select higher goals, perform better, and persist longer on a variety of tasks.
Happy People Are Healthier
Positive emotions result in better physical health. Positive emotions are predictive of health and longevity and protect people from the wear and tear of aging. Positive emotions strongly predict who lives longer, who dies earlier, and who will become disabled. Happy people are more likely to seek out and make use of health risk information. Happy people have better health habits, lower blood pressure, and stronger immune systems than less happy people. They endure pain better and take more health and safety precautions when threatened. Positive emotions and thinking prolong life and improve health.
Happy People Are More Connected With Others
Very happy people differ markedly from average people and from unhappy people in one principle way - a rich and fulfilling social life and more secure relationships. Happy people have more close and casual friends, are more likely to be married, and are more involved in group activities than unhappy people. Happy people are also more altruistic. When we are in a good mood we are less focused on ourselves, we like others more and we want to be kinder and share our good fortune with others. However, when we are experiencing negative emotions and thinking we become distrustful, turn inward and become defensive about our own needs.
Focusing on Positive Emotions
Positive emotions undo negative emotions and reduce the negative physical and psychological stresses of negative experiences. Negative emotions tell you that you are facing a win-loss encounter and need to take steps to engage with the obstacles. Positive emotions and thinking allow you to see a potential win-win situation.
Positive emotions and thinking guide you to be more expansive, tolerant, and creative and maximize the social, intellectual, and physical benefits of the situation. Positive emotions and thoughts provide both the fuel and the raw material for experiencing more growth and development, more exploration and discovery, more mastery and successful interactions in the world. So, yes, there is a great deal of value in feeling good and positive thinking. Go for it!
Copyright (c) 2007 Mary Ann Copson
About The Author
Mary Ann Copson is the founder of the Evenstar Mood & Energy Wellness Center for Women. With Master's Degrees in Human Development and Psychology and Counseling, Mary Ann is a Certified Licensed Nutritionist; Certified Holistic Health Practitioner; Brain Chemistry Profile Clinician; and a Health, Wellness and Lifestyle Coach. Reconnect to your physical, emotional, mental, psychological and spiritual natural rhythms at http://evenstaronline.com
Source: http://www.easyarticles.com
Why Material Success Goes Beyond Money, Cars And A Big Home?
I’ve meet people over the years that have made a great deal of money, that have material wealth, that don’t feel that they are personally successful. Their lives just don’t work. So we are talking about having the material things that bring you happiness but not the fear of losing them or in some causes the guilt over having them.
What I ask my clients to be is the person they want to be? That person who has all of the freedom, flexibility and joy that is part of the equation to follow. Money might be part of the solution but we are seeking more of the state of mind you want by achieving those goals. That is something you can experience as early as today.
Thomas Edison put all this in perspective: He said, “If we did all the things we are capable of doing we could literally astound ourselves.”
I ask clients as they go through the Creative Visualization Relaxation process, to pretend, allow, and imagine what life would be like if you woke up everyday and astounded yourself.
Once you commit to go out and try new things, and notice when you a new thing works and when they don’t you will return to a state of personal power.
The secret to building success is not doing it right the first time, but knowing when you are doing it wrong so that you can do it again differently until you find a way that works for you. In the same way that you learned how to ride that bicycle, or you learned how to walk.
Very few people jumped on a bicycle and learned how to ride it perfectly the first time. I don’t know of any child that stood up the first time and walked across the room. They literally learned to fall down in all conceivable ways until they learned, almost, by accident to walk across the floor.
When you think about testing your own success strategy you are going to do that in the laboratory of your mind. And that is what we are talking about with Mind Mastery. Is developing and cultivating such a powerful mind that you have a place to imagine create and rehearse new behaviors patterns and beliefs. Try them out in your mind first, and if they work for you there, then we are going to ask you take them out in the world as behaviors.
You are going to discover the power of future pacing.
“Imagine where you’d be a week from today, a month from today, a year from today.”
One last point in closing;
There is something that we call ecology. In the same way in nature there are ecological consequences to building a factory, you have to make sure that you don’t damage the water table or perhaps cause air pollution. Even though the factory would create jobs and is good for the economy the factory might be bad for the ecology. In that cause the factory might not be built.
As you practice using Creative Visualization Relaxation techniques you are going to get a clear sense of what you want to accomplish, but most importantly you are going to know when you are off course. If you are not accomplishing the goals that you have set for yourself. Then that is the time for you to take a real hard look at what are you losing, or have to give up when you accomplish this new goal. That will be the sign that you are disrupting your minds ecosystem.
Be ready to let go of where you are so you can get to where you want to be.
Source:http://www.free-article-bank.com
Dr. Patrick Porter is an entrepreneur, award-winning author, and motivational speaker. His electrifying keynote speeches and seminars deliver the real life, nuts ‘n bolts concepts. For more information go to: Patrick Porter, Ph.D.
Thinking Outside The Box - The How To
When innovators talk about thinking outside the box, they mean coming up with creative ways to solve problems - new ways to look at things. How do they do it? How can you do it too? We first have to ask what the "box" is. Then we can look at how to get outside of it.
The "box" is the normal way of doing things and looking at things. It is the assumptions that almost everyone involved is making. The best way to start thinking out of the box then, is to identify and challenge all the assumptions that make up thinking inside the box.
One of the major liquor brands was faltering years ago, and they couldn't seem to boost their sales. Promotions, lowering the price, getting better shelf placement - these were the "in the box" solutions. Then someone challenged the assumptions, by asking "What if we stopped the promotions and just raised the price?"
The price was raised as an experiment, and sales soon doubled. As it turns out, some types of liquor are bought quite often as gifts. Buyers don't want to buy the most expensive one, but they also don't want to seem cheap, so they won't buy products that don't cost enough. Now imagine what happens to your profit margins when you raise the price and double the sales. That's the power of thinking outside of the box.
Ways To Get Outside The Box
Challenging assumptions is a powerful creative problem solving technique. The difficult part is to identify the assumptions. If you are designing a new motorcycle, write down assumptions like "speed matters," "it has to run on gas" and "it needs two wheels," not because you expect to prove these wrong, but because challenging these can lead to creative possibilities. Maybe the time has come for an electric three-wheeled motorcycle.
Another way to get to creative solutions is to "assume the absurd." This is either fun or annoying, depending on how open-minded you can be. All you do is start making absurd assumptions, then finding ways to make sense of them. The easiest way to do it is by asking "what if."
What if a carpet cleaning business was better off with half as many customers? It seems absurd, but work with it. Hmm...less stressful, perhaps. More profitable if each customer was worth three times as much. Is that possible? Commercial jobs that involve large easy-to-clean spaces (theaters, offices, convention halls) make more money in a day than houses, with fewer headaches. Focusing on getting those accounts could be the most profitable way to go - not so absurd.
Another way to more innovative ideas is to literally do your thinking out of the box. Get out of the house or the office. Look around at how others are doing things. On busses in Ecuador, salesmen put a product into everyones hands and let them hold it while they do a sales pitch. Then you have to give back "your" product or pay for it. It is very effective. How could you use the principle in your business?
About the Author: Steve Gillman has been studying brainpower and related topics for years. For more creative problem solving techniques, and to subscribe to the Brain Power Newsletter, visit: http://www.IncreaseBrainPower.com
Source: http://www.easyarticles.comSelf Talk
Self talk is something we all do. We are always explaining things to ourselves, and making comments to ourselves. The question is, what are we saying? What we say to ourselves radically affects the quality of our lives, and our ability to do things effectively.
Are you using positive self-talk or negative self-talk? Below are some of the things that positive and negative people say. Look at the difference, and start talking to yourself in more constructive ways, if you don't already.
Positive Self Talk
Positive people explain bad things by externalizing them ("The weather caused it."). They consider them temporary ("That was a rough couple hours."). They see them as isolated ("THAT part of the plan didn't work, but..."). When they explain good things, they internalize them ("Life is great!"), consider them to be more or less permanent changes ("Now I know how to do this."), and generalize from them ("Things are working out well.").
"I've done well with this."
"This has become a great business to be in."
"I like the way things are going."
"That just went bad due to the weather."
"It was rough for an hour or two."
"The car broke down, but the trip was fun."
Negative Self Talk
Negative people explain bad things by internalizing them ("It's me again."). They consider them permanent ("It's always this way."). They generalize ("Life sucks."). When they explain good things, they externalize them ("That's just lucky."), consider them temporary ("That went well TODAY."), and see them only in a specific context ("At least THIS went right.").
"It's ALWAYS a mess when I meet someone new."
"This party is great, not like mine."
"This is fun for now."
"Well, THAT went okay, I guess."
"I screwed up again."
"This good weather won't last."
If you start explain things to yourself differently, you'll see a difference in your attitude today. Make positive self talk your normal mode of operation, and you'll see a difference in your life. One of the fastest ways to change your experience of life is to change your self talk.
Source: www.easyarticles.com
About the Author: Steve Gillman writes on many topics including brainpower, weight loss, meditation, habits of mind, creative problem solving, generating luck and anything related to self improvement. Learn more and get FREE e-courses at http://www.SelfImprovementNow.com
Changing Negative to Positive Thoughts
Positive thoughts equal positive results. It's been proven time and again throughout the ages by some of the most successful people we have come to know. From as far back as time records people have used positive thinking to change the course of their lives, to change the circumstances of their position and improve themselves in any and all areas.
The act of changing the way you think sounds so simple, so easy to implement that once you get into the habit and realize what power positive thinking holds, you'll wonder why you hadn't taken on the practice earlier in your life. Perhaps the most common reason people do not take on the task of thinking in a positive way is that it takes an action on their part, and sometimes the action needs to be a massive action.
If a person goes through the entirety of their life in a negative state of mind, it becomes ingrained into their soul and becomes who they are. Thus, taking the action to revert that thinking into positive thinking becomes an action that at times can seem futile. A person this deep in negative thinking actually turns the prospect of positive thought into a negative, it becomes a burden to them and they stay in the rut.
One of the easiest ways to combat the negative thoughts that sometimes attempt encroachments in your mind is to recognize that it's a thought that you don't want there and immediately replace it with a positive thought of the same nature. Do this whether that negative thought is a real thing currently in your life, whether it's something that could happen or if it's something that has happened.
If that negative beast is something that is currently going on in your life, the positive thought you replace it with should be a thought of how you'd prefer that specific situation to be. Perhaps a thought comes in your mind about how far behind you are on a specific bill, picture in your mind the bill and the amount it is. Now change it. Instead of showing a large balance owed, change the picture in your mind to show a zero balance.
Now picture yourself holding that zeroed out bill in your hand, look at that smile on your face and the feeling of elation in your soul. Keep that visualization in your mind for a while, keep there for as long as you possibly can and revel in the positive feelings it's generating in you right now.
Don't you feel better now? Aren't you more ready to take on whatever task you were in the middle of when that nasty tried coming into your thoughts? It works and after time it will become a mere habit to change all of your thoughts into positive thoughts. You can feel all those great feelings all of the time and with this positive frame of mind you will be able to accomplish anything.
Source: www.easyarticles.com
About the Author: For more information on Positive thinking and happy living visit: A Happy Self
