Do you find that the way you think about things is holding you back? Whether it’s the frustration of reaching your goals, having good relationships, or managing your work or business, it can be helpful to reframe your thinking.
By being present to the constant train of thoughts running through your mind and making a few refinements, you can break free from mental blocks that are sabotaging your success.
In this post, you’ll learn a few short and handy tips you can apply to change how you think. Let’s get started.
Know your thoughts
Thoughts are hard to detect sometimes. We’re so used to thinking all the time that we often allow unhelpful thoughts to go unchallenged. Thoughts about fixing a leaking pipe, making more sales for your business, or helping your kids come and go unceasingly.
However, just the simple act of seeing what you’re thinking without necessarily believing each one that appears can make a tremendous difference.
Use a paper or online journal or a notepad and from time to time, make notes of the thoughts that appear. The important thing is to not believe or judge anything you experience. When you do this, you’ll develop greater awareness of the thoughts that could be sabotaging your goals. With this knowledge, you can then question how valid or real these thought patterns are and whether you should continue to entertain them.
Be aware that thoughts and emotions are fleeting
People experience thinking at all times. It’s the thoughts we believe and pay attention to that become predominant in our lives.
Knowing this, become aware of the thoughts that constantly go through your mind. You’ll notice that you dismiss many of them but focus on a few and give them meaning.
As you observe this, you’ll realize that all thoughts are fleeting. And it’s this understanding that makes it possible to loosen your hold on thoughts that particularly trouble you.
An important factor to consider is the impact that feelings have on your state of mind. One of the reasons why negative thought patterns are hard to let go of is because they’re accompanied by strong emotions. But when you realize that feelings are as transient as thoughts, you’ll learn to let them pass.
In this way, you’ll build emotional intelligence that will help you manage your personal life, business, and more.
Make small changes
Once you start to become aware of thoughts and the fact that they constantly change, you’re in a position to start making small changes.
For example, just placing a glass of water by my bedside helped me make drinking more water a regular habit.
You could similarly send a loving message to a family member once a day. Or make one small change to your business to create growth like sending an email to customers.
There’s a good reason why in fitness and other domains, it’s recommended that you make small changes rather than dramatic ones. Because it gives you the chance to make the small mental changes you need to in order to sustain long-term habit changes.
Use journaling to reframe your thinking
Journaling can be a great tool to help you change your thinking. It’s personalized therapy! This is because when you have to put into words what you are feeling, you begin to understand the thoughts that need to be changed.
Journaling gives you the time to take stock of your thinking and examine it for any biases or undesirable tendencies. The goal is introspection, honesty, and solace.
Write down the negative thoughts and doubts you are having about yourself to determine their validity. Write your affirmation for an empathetic perspective. When you address individual thoughts in this way, you’ll start reframing your thoughts.
Conclusion
Changing the way you think can be difficult but possible. However, the reason we all struggle with it so much is that we assign meaning to everything we feel and think. That has its advantages and disadvantages too.
In this post, we’ve looked at some powerful ways to reframe how we think especially with regard to poor habits. By applying what you’ve learned here. You can experience greater freedom from unhelpful thoughts and personal happiness.