Daily US Times, Valene Car: rethink Your thinking- Our thoughts, and the emotions and reactions we have as a result of our thoughts, more often than not either positively charge us toward success or negatively contribute to self-sabotaging our progress.

It is essential to understand that there is a relationship between what we think and the results or outcomes we experience.

Our thoughts directly affect what we feel, and what we are feeling will either drive us toward action or inaction depending on whether our feelings are motivating or not.

To ensure we are thinking thoughts that will drive us toward success, we need to take an inventory of what thoughts we find running through our minds the most.

If you find that you have a negative soundtrack of fear, worry, disbelief, inability, and angst, then, unfortunately, this negative thinking will only produce negative results.

What do we think? Rethink your thinking

Though we may not have control over what happens to us, we do have control over what we think about what happens to us, and this applies to our goals as well.

If we set a goal toward achieving a specific desire but begin to entertain thoughts of inadequacy, inability and overwhelm, we are setting ourselves up to be sabotaged by our thoughts.

This type of thinking only produces emotions that are unconstructive and defeating. Unconstructive emotions create unconstructive actions, which results in an outcome that is far from our desired goal.

Often, while we work toward a goal, we experience an obstacle that slows our progress. At this point, we may begin questioning either our capabilities of overcoming the obstacle or the viability of our goal.

These thoughts leave us feeling fearful, discouraged and confused. These discouraging feelings do precisely that, discourage us from continuing and working toward our goal. We can then find ourselves stuck doing nothing.

This in-action drives us farther and farther from our goal. It is imperative during these times, when we begin thinking thoughts of incompetence and doubt, to re-frame these thoughts to affirming and encouraging, so we produce feelings that are motivating and inspiring.

‘These feelings of motivation then propel us into effective action, resulting in either achieving our goal or at least keeping us on track to achieve it.

This process takes commitment and practice; however, it’s less difficult than imagined. One of the first steps is to slow your mind down and put the soundtrack on pause. Listen to your thoughts and take an inventory.

If you find demotivating: Rethink Your Thinking

If you find demotivating, fearful thoughts, make a conscious decision at that moment to rethink your thinking and frame them from an, “I am never going to achieve my goal” to, “I still have work to do, but I am closer today than yesterday, so I’m not giving up.”

Tell me… which one motivates you more? Our thoughts are not created or etched into stone. What you are thinking about does not have to dictate what is going to happen.

You can change your thinking by consciously setting a negative thought aside or re-framing it to a positive and redirecting your course should you find you’re off track.

Writer: Valerie Catt CHC, CLC is a functional nutrition and vællness coach; works with women to overcome sabotage and limited beliefs to achieve health, weight and life goals.

Rethink Your Thinking – Change Your Thoughts, Change Your World

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