Creating positive thought habits

If you’re new to the whole positive thinking process, you might be wondering how you can go about eliminating negative thought patterns and creating positive ones. In which case you will find this article useful.

Before we start though, let’s go through and analyse our thoughts for the day. Most of us get up in the morning and after the initial 30 seconds of actually “booting up” the first thoughts that come into our head are all about what needs to be done and where we should be etc… Pretty much all the negative thoughts and all your worries return instantly.

Is there a technique to shut down negative thoughts instantly?

Here is your challenge for today and you will need to follow it precisely if you want to get the results. This is a challenge that should become your habit, but for today just think of it as a 24 hour challenge starting at when you go to bed tonight.

About an hour before you intend to go to bed get a piece of paper and write out exactly what you want to do tomorrow. Put it all on a piece of paper (again, don’t type it – write it out on a physical piece of paper). Be as clear as possible. Don’t worry if the list is massive and you think it’s unlikely you will get it all done tomorrow. Just write it all out.

Once your list is done, put a number next to each item, based on priority for tomorrow, so the most important job gets a priority number 1 and so forth. After that, go through in your head over each one of those items you’ve written down, just imagine yourself doing the actual tasks and crossing them out of the list.

The point of the first bit of the exercise is to relax your mind. So that it knows all its “worries” have been committed to paper, this is a powerful exercise that will not only allow you to sleep better but it’s the first step to creating a positive mindset and thinking habits.

I’ve found that listening to classical music (e.g. Mozart) or other music with a positive uplifting feel (e.g. trance) is a great way to sleep. Turn the volume down just to the point where you can just hear it, but it does not disturb you.

You may find it hard to sleep with music at first, because you are concentrating on it. Don’t concentrate on it, don’t focus on the music, it’s simply pleasant background noise. It may be hard for the first few nights, but what this allows you to do is get in bed, put the music on, close your eyes and sleep.

Having music play in the background is a good method for stopping your mind wandering away and thinking about all your problems.

Set your alarm clock for about 30 minutes before you’d usually set it. You’ll need a few extra minutes to do the morning exercises.

Once you get up, avoid the massive urge to run to your computer to check your email or facebook. Avoid the TV or radio. Just get up and sit still for a minute. Go get the book you’re currently reading. I suggest you get yourself a few motivating books (there are hundreds out there) and spend at least 15 minutes reading it.

The purpoes of this part is to start your day with a positive outlook. Sure enough someone has emailed you with something that will “need” your immediate attention. The TV and radio both have lots of bad news to give you, how often do news broadcasters talk about the great things that have happened the day before?

By simply avoiding mediums of negativity for just the first 30 minutes to an hour in the morning, you can start your day with a very positive outlook. Reading your motivational book will get your mind thinking in the right manner.

At this stage your mind is thinking, what are you doing, we have to worry about today, why are you reading a book! This is madness. Continue reading, focus on the words, focus on the idea that you want to start your day in a positive fashion.

After about 15 minutes of reading, go grab your list of jobs to do for today and have a read over them.

Now, here is the tricky part for the rest of the day. You need to create a concious habit of shutting down negative thoughts as soon as they pop up in your head.

First let me distinguish between negative thoughts and your brain’s impulses about your surroundings. Having your mind tell you, “slow down it’s a red light” is not a negative thought. It’s a positive thought. It’s trying to stop you from having an accident.

A negative thought is when you start to think about how horrible your presentation will go today at work. How bad the traffic is, how you wish you had a better job, how much you hate your  boss, how you wish your life was different etc etc.

As complex as creatures as we are, we have one single limitation. We can only hold one thought in our mind at any one time. Don’t believe me? Try thinking about a Pink Elephant walking across a jungle and a then at the same time, think about what you have to do at work today.

You can trick  yourself by thinking about the elephant and speaking about your work. This way you’re visualising the thought of the elephant and using your voice to convey your work. That’s not the same thing. Visualise the elephant and visualise your self at work at the same time. It’s always one or the other, you can switch so quickly that it may seem as though you can do both, but it’s always one, or the other.

Don’t worry. This limitation is a gift not a curse! What this means is that you can only ever hold one thought in your head. Negative or Positive.

If you’re stuck in traffic and you are annoyed and frustrated at the traffic (or at yourself as a result of being stuck there), stop, stop yourself from thinking about the bad traffic. How does thinking about bad traffic going to make a difference? Why make yourself angry?

Instead, everytime a thought such as that comes in to your head, change it to a positive. I am stuck in traffic, how great, I can listen to my motivational or business development CDs. I am going to be late for work, how great, it will give some personal time to think about how I can solve the problem I am working on for my company. I can talk to my wife. It can even be as small as : I am stuck in traffic, how can I avoid this situation tomorrow, I know, I’ll leave earlier or take a different path, maybe catch a bus or train.

Every time a negative thought comes in, catch it and instantly reverse it. Take control of your mind and your thoughts. Don’t let negative thoughts control your life.

If you’re one of those people that wake up in the morning and dread going to work, if your entire mind is filled with thoughts of how much you hate work, you have to change your path.

Being stuck in a job you hate can be the worst thing you can do in life. Not only will it lead to chronic negativity about life (ever met a bitter old man that tells you he has been doing the same thing for the last 30 years?), but it can have a damage on your life expectancy and health as well. Change. Change. Change. The happiest people on earth are the ones that love what they do.

Change is not a prolonged process. Change takes place in an instant. Every change starts with a thought in your head.

The very first requirement for change is in your head. You need to change your thoughts first. Instead of thinking how much you hate your job, think about how great it will be once you get another job. Think about how you are going to apply for other jobs. Think about how you’re going to upgrade your skills to get a new job. Think about how your new salary will improve your life.

Change your negative thoughts to positive thoughts.

The actual process is easy. Simply replace one negative thought with a positive thought. The application is hard at first because your mind will try to bring back the negative thought. Remember the pink elephant exercise, only one thought at a time. Concentrate on the positive thought.

Persistence is the key. If you just realised you spent 30 seconds with a negative thought, don’t hate yourself, simply swap as soon as you have that realisation. Tell yourself why you’re swapping. “I am a positive person, I am thinking about positive things”.

Anxiety and anxious thoughts are the hardest to defeat. For example if you’re anxious about a business meeting or a presentation or having to do a task you’re not sure you can complete well. Instead of worrying about all the bad things of that situation, think about all the ways by which you can change the outcome to a positive. Think about what you need to learn, think about what you have to say. See yourself presenting and speaking at the presentation or business meeting. See yourself doing a good job.

Here are the preperation steps.

1. Get yourself a good motivational or positive book as well as some audio CDs from positive thinkers (Brian Tracy, Eben Pagan, Anthony Robbins etc).
2. Get yourself some uplifting music (without lyrics).
3. Before going to bed – write out all the things that need to be done for the next day.
4. Prioritise them with 1 being the highest priority.
5. Go through each one of those tasks and see yourself doing it and see yourself crossing it off your list.
6. Go to bed listening to uplifting music at a low volume to keep your mind clear.
7. When you awaken, do not clutter your mind with negative thoughts. Don’t watch TV, don’t listen to the radio, don’t check your emails. Simply take just one minute to relax first.
8. Read your book for at least 15 minutes to get your mind in the right frame.
9. Go through each one of the tasks from today’s list and see yourself doing the job and see yourself crossing it off your list.
10. Do this every night for the next 30 days.

Positive-thought habit steps:

1. When a negative thought comes in to your head – stop yourself from dwelling on it. Ask yourself, what is the point of thinking about this negatively.
2. Replace your negative thoughts with positive thoughts as soon as possible. Almost every situation has a positive side. Concentrate on it.
3. Practise, Practise, Practise.
4. Translate thoughts into action. If instead of thinking how boring your job is you begin thinking about how great your next job will be. Congratulations, that’s the first step. Now begin looking for your next job.
5. Don’t allow other’s to bring you down. This is the hardest step. This article will help.

Remember, your thoughts are in your control. You can control what you think about. Stop focusing on negative thoughts. Build yourself a positive thought habit starting right now! Try the ideas presented here for 30 days and I am certain you will notice a dramatic change in your thinking.

Related posts:

1. How to stop worrying
2. Giving positive and constructive criticism
3. Mental Discipline an introduction
4. Three demotivating personalities to avoid
5. Mind-clustering: Organize your mind, and get things done!