What you think is what you attract. Take a moment to reflect on the language that you speak to yourself or people around you. Do you find that it is mostly focused on your shortcomings or the mistakes you make while discounting or being inconsiderate of your strengths and accomplishments?
Evolutionary perspective suggests that the human brain has been hardwired through evolution to focus on the negative as an instinctual response to protect us.
Our negative thoughts have a great impact on our daily living, relationships, decision-making, self-esteem, and confidence. Our thoughts lead to feelings, which motivate our actions. With an in-built tendency to focus on the negatives, we tend to focus more on our problems than our blessings.
When you choose to be neutral and balanced, like recognising and appreciating the positives and having a rational plan and right efforts to overcome shortcomings, you tend to move in the growth direction. So, how can we transform from our negative thinking to a neutral one?
1. Practice Gratitude
Firstly, count your blessings, be grateful for every little thing you have from day to night, things, rank, people, and memories. Think about what makes you smile, what went in your favor today, how far you have progressed on a critical task you have been dealing with, and more.
Secondly, be a B-A-B-Y, which means to Be A Better You. Be the person who knows you better than anyone else. Be someone who you feel proud of, someone who accepts their success and shortcomings. Be someone who believes in building a learning culture rather than a culture of blame.
So, to begin practicing gratitude in our lives, we need to tune our minds to count our blessings and aim to be a better you. Acknowledge the roles that other people play and our own roles in providing goodness in each other’s lives. Affirm the good things that we have received and the good things that we have given, which brings us to our next point on writing down positive affirmations.
2. Write Positive affirmations.
To affirm good things, it is important to know what affirmation means. Something that is affirmed is basically a statement or preposition that is declared to be true.
Firstly, think about the areas of your life that you'd like to change. Second, turn negative thoughts into positive ones. Thirdly, be sure that your affirmation is credible and achievable. Fourth, write your affirmation in the present tense. Lastly, say it with feeling.
Affirmations are designed to encourage an optimistic mindset which is a powerful way to be open to new learning. Affirmations also has a calming effect on the mind and body, and it also sets the stage for increased focus, motivation, and clarity throughout the day.
3. Keep a Gratitude Journal.
With the above steps, journal down the entire process. Make it a daily practice to remind yourself of the gifts of life, the grace, good and benefits that you enjoy from it. Practice gratitude by thinking back about these moments that have given you positivity. Affirm the good things in your life. Then, pen them down in a gratitude journal that you can look back on when the tough times get going.
So, if you noticed, there is a link between all three action points—the art of introspection. The root that ties them all together is you being able to reach into yourself through reflection. Recognise your abilities, potential, thoughts, and feelings so that you can chart your path to a better life. Remember, your thoughts lead to your feeling which is followed by your actions. So be mindful by practicing gratitude and affirming positivity.
Are you struggling with finding the positives in your life or do you know someone who is? Talk it out with our in-house counsellors, Ms. Harshali Kotekar (hr2@executiveship.com) and Ms. Glenda D’Silva (welfare2@samundra.com).
