In one of our previous lessons, we introduced the idea of mindfulness, and one of the specific applications involved attending, mindfully, to our thoughts.
If you’ve tried this – which I hope you have – you very possibly noticed that your thoughts were not necessarily all helpful or constructive. That’s OK – in fact it’s completely normal to have a range of thoughts, positive and negative, realistic and unrealistic.
But it’s worth noting that ‘normal’ isn’t always the same as helpful! Just because most of us have unhelpful thoughts doesn’t mean we have to, or should, just put up with them.
Unrealistic and unhelpful thoughts can, not surprisingly, cause negative emotions, unhappiness and dysfunction. And they can also distract us from what we’re trying to achieve. In fact, unhelpful thoughts can sabotage our efforts to live a Super Life and to achieve happiness and success.
But as always, there’s something we can do about this if we so choose. We can change our thinking and by doing so, we can change our lives!
As already hinted at, one of the most useful strategies is to be more mindful of our thinking; you can’t change something if you don’t know what it is! But as we become more mindful of our thoughts, we then become better placed to do something about them.
So basically, direct your attention inwards, and become aware of what you’re saying to yourself. Turn the internal soundtrack up – tune in to what’s happening in your thoughts.
Which then raises the questions we all should ask on a regular basis:
- Are these thoughts helping me?
- Are they contributing to me feeling and living as I want to feel and live?
- Or are they detracting from my happiness and fulfilment?
If your thoughts are helpful and reasonable then, quite obviously, keep thinking them!
If, however, you determine that your thoughts are not necessarily serving you well, then note this, and get ready for our next lesson in which a number of strategies will be suggested to help you think in a way that’s more consistent with your super self, and your Super Life.
Remember to download this week’s worksheet which will guide you through the activity.