Your Greatest Power
"A Man Is What He Thinks About All Day." - Ralph Waldo Emerson
"Five percent of the people think; ten percent of the people think they think; and the other eighty-five percent would rather die than think." - Thomas A. Edison
Thoughts are not facts. Just because you think it, does not mean it is true or that it is helpful for you. You can change your thoughts so that your thoughts can guide you towards being a better, happier, and well-adjusted individual.
The greatest power we have in this life is our mind and how we choose to think. There are many ways of thinking, and the ultimate truth is – as a man thinks, so he is.
In all ancient teachings, words of great spiritual leaders and even in the bible the message is – as you believe - so will your life be. The reality is that the happiness in your life depends on the quality of your thoughts. Below are some different types of thinking and how they help or hurt you.
POSITIVE THINKING.
Positive thinking is when your mind is mostly full of hope and positive thoughts. It is imagining a positive future for yourself and positive outcomes for all you try to achieve.
Positive thinking seems to be something that some people are born with, and others just had bad luck. This is so far from the truth. All thinking is a choice. In your unconscious mind you have a programme that has been playing since birth and has formed the habits of your thinking. You can change that habit and the secret is repetition. The programme is what Bob Proctor calls the paradigm and our goal is a paradigm shift.
Positive thinking is important because of its enormous effects on the body, brain, mind, and life.
Positive thinkers are more successful, resilient, happy, and healthy. They have higher self-esteem and self-belief and a more hopeful outlook on the future.
We can write out a list of the positive attributes we would love to have and read them aloud every day and soon it becomes your new way of thinking. It is not that you become a negative thinker pretending to be positive – you really do become positive.
Some of the benefits of positive thinking are:
- Increased life span.
- Lower rates of depression and sadness.
- Lower levels of distress and pain.
- Greater resistance to illnesses.
- Better psychological and physical well-being.
- Better cardiovascular health and reduced risk of death from cardiovascular disease and stroke.
- Feelings of greater confidence.
- Resiliency
- More Productivity
- Better Relationships
- Greater joy
- Overall happiness and wellbeing.
Some studies show that humans are likely to be negative thinkers - coming from the time we were cave dwellers and there was so much danger.
To think positively takes some practice and is well worth the effort. In the beginning it means watching your thinking and counteracting a negative thought with a positive one. But thinking is like a muscle so the more you do it the more it becomes a habit. Soon it brings you the happiness and joy you seek.
The great thing about changing to positive thinking is that it releases happy hormones which soon becomes addictive. The positive words I wrote out awhile back I now recite from memory while walking to get exercise. It increases my happiness and is changing my mind.
Before you decide to think only positive thoughts – read below the benefits of negative thoughts.
NEGATIVE THINKING
By now, you understand the benefits of optimism. But like anything, too much of it can be a bad thing. Some research shows that when taken to the extreme, optimism can cause toxic positivity. If a friend is in trouble and broken, and you just say “cheer up. Life is good.” This can seem very hurtful and make your friend feel more isolated and hurt.
Having too much optimism can also lead people to take risks because they underestimate the level of danger involved. Having too much bravery isn’t necessarily a good thing.
A few decades ago, when positive thinking was at its height, companies took it too seriously and fired the pessimists. The companies then went bankrupt. Obviously, there is some need for pessimists.
An experiment conducted on optimists and pessimists showed an interesting difference: They laid out two tables. One with negative things on it and the other with positive things on it. They brought in the optimists and they had a short time to estimate the number of items on each table. The optimists exaggerated the number of things on the positive table and underestimated the number on the negative table. They then brought in the pessimists expecting the reverse to happen. To their surprise the pessimists guessed both tables accurately.
Pessimists are more accurate than optimists. That is why the companies went bankrupt. The salespeople and sales managers need to be optimists. Perhaps the CEO too. But disaster hits when the accountant is an optimist. He will love the shiny, new investment with high risk and say – ‘I’m sure it will be great!’ just before the company loses all its money. Some jobs need accuracy rather than just positive thoughts. E.g., engineers, surgeons, financial planners etc.
Trying to be positive when you are grieving or experiencing other serious distress can seem impossible. During these times, it’s important to take the pressure off of feeling positive. Sometimes you need to feel and release negative emotions. Instead, channel that energy into getting support from others.
Positive thinking isn’t about burying every negative thought or emotion you have or avoiding difficult feelings. The lowest points in our lives are often the ones that motivate us to move on and make positive changes.
The good thing about being a pessimist is that you can learn positive thinking and keep your accuracy.
Learned optimism can improve your mood and well-being. It can increase your self-esteem and encourage more positive behaviour.
Pessimists are more accurate and realistic than optimists. But optimists succeed five times more often than pessimists, because they keep trying. But the real key is to develop your positivity and keep your accuracy.
After you learn how to think positively, you will notice amazing changes all around you. Your brain will begin to operate in a state of free-flowing feel-good hormones called endorphins, which will make you feel lighter and happier.
You will also notice a major boost in confidence and will feel more capable of taking on new challenges that might have previously been outside your comfort zone.
By reducing your self-limiting beliefs, you will effectively release your brakes and experience growth like you never imagined. Essentially, you can change your entire life simply by the power of positive thinking.
- If you change the way you think, you will change the way you feel.
- If you change how you feel you will change your behaviour.
- If your behaviour changes, so do your actions!
- If you change your actions, you change your results!
Invictus
By William Ernest Henley
Out of the night that covers me,
Black as the pit from pole to pole,
I thank whatever gods may be
For my unconquerable soul.
In the fell clutch of circumstance
I have not winced nor cried aloud.
Under the bludgeonings of chance
My head is bloody, but unbowed.
Beyond this place of wrath and tears
Looms but the Horror of the shade,
And yet the menace of the years
Finds and shall find me unafraid.
It matters not how strait the gate,
How charged with punishments the scroll,
I am the master of my fate,
I am the captain of my soul.
What the mind can conceive and believe, the mind can achieve.