When your mind is in a negative place, use these tips to shift toward happiness
We’ve all been there before: those days when our minds are filled with negative thoughts and self-doubt. But as powerful as these thoughts may seem, your mind is more powerful! The road back to Happy You is through awareness, an amazing tool that can help us change those negative thoughts into positive, energizing ones.
Negativity is a toxin for the body. Have you experienced tight shoulders? That’s just one sign that your negative thoughts are causing your body stress. And when you think negative thoughts and feel the stress kick in, it also disheartens your spirit. But when you transform your thoughts through awareness, you can infuse happiness into your life — mind, body and spirit.
Awareness boils down to three steps: sharpening your focus, changing your perspective, and connecting to your higher self. The best vehicle for this journey is self-coaching. In India, self-coaching is a central process in life. From a young age, children at school are taught the first stages of meditation, including how to focus and be mindful about their thoughts. Think of Buddhists, who have the incredible ability to find peace and self-awareness no matter how chaotic their surrounding environment may be. They spend years practicing mindfulness and meditation in order to achieve a state of nirvana.
But you don’t have to be a Buddhist or a skilled meditation practitioner to boost your awareness. These three simple daily practices will help you defeat those negative thoughts so that you can connect back with Happy You.
Clear your focus
Take at least five minutes to sit and do absolutely nothing. No moving, talking or doing. Clearing your mind of any thoughts is the most difficult part. If you’re having trouble, focus on an image in your mind and follow your breathing. Perhaps you can imagine a tree and focus on the swaying of branches in the wind. Concentrate on this image to avoid thinking about anything else. The exercise can help you discover a more clear focus.
Shift your perspective
When you begin to feel a negative or doubting thought pop up in your mind, try turning it into a positive one. If you’re stuck in traffic, don’t let the delay consume your mind. Instead, use the time to reflect on all the good things that happened in your day. Consider the traffic stall a blessing that gave you a few extra moments of free time to be thankful for what you have.
Connect with your higher self
Before you go to sleep each night, connect with your higher self. Keep a daily journal where you write down five good things that happened, five things you are looking forward to, and five things you want to accomplish in the near future. You’ll be surprised how this little act of awareness can transform your outlook on life and help you connect back to your higher self and true sense of purpose.
Happy You, through awareness you have the power to train your mind into a positive direction. Changing your thoughts can change your life!