Self-Improvement and Interesting Knowledge

Create Your Own Happy Place

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You can create your own happy place. I know, you are telling me that after watching “Fight Club” you think that this is not the best idea ever. Well let me tell you that going to your imaginary happy place is an incredibly powerful technique, no matter what Tyler Durden says.

The mind, and focused visualization in particular, is a very powerful thing. The Body is not able to tell the difference between a vividly visualized thing and the real life concrete thing. You can recreate the workings of your brain, increasing the number of nerve ending and junctions in certain areas, and you can even increase the brains ability to shape itself and how it function. More importantly as it relates to this article, your vivid visualizations can stimulate the release of certain hormones and impulses. This means that your vivid visualizations can make you happier and more productive.

In order to have this kind of mental ability, you need to be able to visualize very well. The best way to get good at this, like anything else, is to practice. The good thing is that visualizing can always be a fun thing and only becomes a chore if you are not being creative enough. The trick is to visualize things that you find fun and entertaining. The easiest way to do this is to practice visualizing your desires.

For example let’s say that you would really love to go to the beach. Instead of trying to visualize a static room, or a cube or something, visualize yourself at the most beautiful beach ever. Try to see yourself at the beach, as if you have magically teleported to some gorgeous sandy, sunny beach on a tropical island. First work on an image, you could get an image from a magazine or the internet. Close your eyes and see if you can visualize the image that you just saw. It won’t be perfect unless you have photographic memory so no worries, just add on as you see fit or open your eyes and keep trying until you can close your eyes and have a good image in your mind’s eye of the picture that you were looking at.

Next try and add detail to this visualization. Try to hear the surf, feel the warm breeze, and feel the sand between your toes. Try even to smell the salt water and the ocean around you. Try to involve all your senses in your visualization if you can. Finally try to feel your way into the scene, create the feeling that you are there and that wherever you look you see the beauty of the beach. Do this exercise for a good 15 to 20 minutes.

When you get a chance again, try to visualize another fun desire. As above try to use all your senses to make the visualization as real as possible. And again try to do this for a good 15 to 20 minutes. For best results, try and practice your visualizations at least once a day.

Now you have the option of either sticking to one happy place, a place that you can go to when you need an escape or you have the option of picking a new place that you might desire to go to, whenever you want to. If you stick to one place, you can really develop a detailed place that has the potential of becoming as real as any place that you might experience during regular time. If you choose to change the place, it might not be as specific and as concrete but it will be exciting all the time because it will be new, because it will be your latest desire. It is up to you to choose what you like best, experiment.

You can create this happy place when you have time or when you need to take a break. With practice you will be able to go to your special place just about any time that you want and it will be so real that it will truly allow you to escape your current conditions. This kind of vivid visualization can restore your spirit, allow you time to rest, let you escape from a difficult places or situations, get happier, and relieve depression. It can literally alter your brain and its functions. Create your own happy place and find anything that you desire

 

 

 

Test To See If You Are An Introvert Or An Extrovert

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Here is a simple exercise to find your personality type. This is a very good way to see if you are an introvert or an extrovert. It’s good to know what kind of personality you have because it makes it much easier for you to understand yourself. Each personality type has different needs when it comes to many facets in life. This is especially true when it comes to dealing with others and the world at large.
An extrovert wants to go out there and get his/her hands dirty. They are usually participating and often want to be seen. Extroverts have a much easier time with certain jobs and task, that usually involve a lot of human contact and dealing with the public in general. They tend, or should focus on developing their interpersonal skills and style.

Introverts like to be behind the scenes. They tend to like to fade into the background, and be part of the supporting team. Introverts prefer jobs where dealing with people is kept to a minimum and tend to focus more on jobs where technical skill is more important than interpersonal savvy. Introverts should focus on their mental and focusing abilities.

Try to answer the questions below and see whether you are a or b:

What do you feel better and more energized about;

a)    The company of other people
b)    Your own company

How would you describe yourself;

a)    Sociable and outgoing
b)    Thoughtful and purposeful

What is most important to you;

a)    Getting a reaction from other
b)    Being clear thinking

What do you hate the most;

a)    Loneliness
b)    Chaos

What do you prefer;

a)    Handling other people
b)    Achieving things

If you have checked off mostly A then you are most likely an extrovert, and if you have checked mostly B then you are an introvert.

Both personality types have their strengths and weaknesses and there isn’t one that is better than the other. There is also the possibility of change over time. We are all growing and changing as we do, make sure that you stay aware of the kind of person that you are and you follow your desires. The real important thing is that you recognize who you are, what you want to be, and try not to push yourself to do things that are uncomfortable and debilitating for you.

 

 

 

 

 

To Become A Success You Can’t Lower Your Standards

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Never lower your standards. Many people would love to bring you down just to make themselves feel better. Don’t give others this kind of power.

The world is full of those that would judge you. You might say that we are all programmed to judge others. It is after all a survival mechanism. If you are able to judge others, you are able to predict what they will do. This is a very powerful way to be able to take charge of any situation and to be able to control the outcome. It is for this reason that we are all programmed by nature herself to try to judge others. Those that can judge others well, will know what will happen and therefore live longer. What happens though is that this proclivity for the judgment of others tends to always be on. Other people want to judge you whether they realize it or not, whether they think that it is politically correct or not. Well let them judge you, it is inevitable, just don’t let them lower your standards about things by telling you what you should do, or have.

We are also all pre-wired to try and control every situation that is presented before us. Again this is an evolutionary response where those that are successful at controlling are better at surviving. People will try and control you, people will also try and control whatever situation that you and they are in. To blame others and to hate people in general for this is really just a waste of time, we are what we are and usually for good reason. What you must do is not let others control you but not get emotionally upset about it.

People will try to get a read on you. People will also try and get you to do what they want, or to put you in a place where they are in control. The tribe is based on all focusing on the same goal. Like the Japanese say, “ the nail that sticks out, gets pounded back down.” These tribes still exist today. They are made up of family, work groups, communities, and friends. Modern tribes have now even extended themselves unto the Web where you see tribes made up of the friends that you have on Facebook and similar social media.

Many of these efforts to tell you what to do and lower your standards can be down right scary. Besides the reasons above, humans have a huge need to maintain routine. This is perhaps the most important and powerful reason for control, it actually outweighs personal survival. The reason for this is that the personal routine that these tribes and extended tribes (like cities and even countries) maintain, assures their group survival. We are no longer just talking about an individual, we are talking about the cohesion and survival of the whole.

The need to maintain the routine and therefore the beliefs of the tribe intact is what caused the great witch trials and nearly all of the wars today. There is no more dangerous a thing than to try to go against a tribes beliefs and routine. The routine maintains and supports. The belief is the source that underlies this routine.

You might think that this has nothing to do with your simple desire to maintain personal standards, or that this might not apply to you in this modern world. Well it takes very little looking to see that it is very dangerous to be openly gay, or to practice a religion (or any belief) in most parts of the world, this includes the West.

Now after I have said all that, I want you to fight to not lower your standards for anyone. Depending on where you live, this might be a very difficult thing. The simple solution is to keep you matters private as much as you can. The more others know the more they will try to control. In order to become one of a kind and to overcome the inertia of where you are, you have to keep your standards. Stay strong and don’t let others bring you down.

 

 

 

Learn To Be Alone To Find Your Success In Life

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Don’t be scared to be alone.  There is a big difference between being alone and being lonely.  To be alone is a good thing, it gives you time and the space needed to perform things that you cannot do around others.  Loneliness is an emotional response that is usually brought around by a feeling of self pity.

There are many times in our lives when we need to be alone.  Sometimes it seems like these alone periods in our lives happen on purpose or perhaps for a bigger reason.  I believe that these alone times happen because our inner self wishes to give our ego (external self) the time to contemplate and get ready for the changes that are coming, or perhaps the changes that have already happened.  These changes can either be physical ones where we are most likely making some kind of big move in our lives or mental changes that mean a large change in how we perceive our present, past, and future.

When you do find yourself alone then, make sure that you use this time wisely.  Make sure that you take the time to contemplate yourself and where you find yourself at this moment.  Also look into the future and make sure that you feel confident about where you are going, that you have the strength and the capabilities to tackle anything that the future might send your way.  To do this it is often necessary to look at the past to examine both successes and failures and to try and learn from these.  There is no better time to do this then when you are alone and have the ability to examine your life in peace and tranquility.

It is my belief that you should always use this time to refine and focus on your path.  Your path is really a focused objective where you are trying to fulfill your values, your desires, and attain happiness.  This is a very good thing because as I had said in other articles, in order to be able to accomplish anything you need to make constant evaluations of where you are at the moment.  With this evaluation, you can see if you are still on course, and decide whether you need to make any corrections to get where you want to go.  Your path and fulfilling your values is really the most important thing in your life, it is therefore imperative that you take this time when you are alone to re-calibrate your objectives.

Always realize that there is a big difference between being alone and being lonely.  There is literally a whole universe in your head, that you can access to find incredible magic and beauty.  This world is at your disposal if you are willing to open up to your imagination.  You can find this world by using those quiet and alone times to stop the mental chatter.  Simply let go for a while and allow those things and thoughts inside your mind the freedom that they need to be able to express themselves to you.  Some would call this daydreaming, but that tends to have negative connotations, I would rather call it self contemplation.  This self contemplation will allow you to bring those inner thoughts out into your conscious awareness.  Just remember to stay focused on remembering what you are daydreaming about, or else you will forget as easily as you forget regular dreams.

Perhaps in the future, you will desire to be more alone.  It can actually be an addictive thing, because it is very relaxing and very healing to have this time to yourself.  The bigger the thinker that you are the more that you will appreciate these moments, and the more that you will want to contemplate the world and your place in.  So don’t be afraid to be alone because this is the time that is given to you to find yourself and your place in the world.

 

 

 

 

How To Do Affirmations Properly

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Affirmations are very powerful.  They can be used to change a belief, and to give us positive emotions when we’re feeling quite negative.  They are perhaps the best and easiest way to change how we feel at any moment.  The trick is really the focus in that you need to be focused completely on the affirmation that you are using, or else it won’t work well.

In order to have positive and lasting results from an affirmation, these affirmations need to be done properly.  The technique is most important, and the reason why affirmations have become lack luster in the last while is that most people do not know how to use them properly.  The most important aspect of an affirmation is that kind of focus that you give to them, this can not be stressed enough.  Most people believe that you can just say any phrase, anytime, however you want and you will get results.  This is not the case, for an affirmation to be successful it must have your undivided attention.

Affirmations can be done anywhere, and this is perhaps why some people believe that you can say them without really having to pay attention to them.  But even when you are saying them while driving or while doing some other activity, it is important that you give them at least some attention.  Affirmations that you use during these times of personal activity tend to be more for changing negative emotional states.  They are used to refocus your mind on a more positive thing so that you can break a negative feeling.  But even when they are used in this way they must be given some attention.  Do please be careful if you are engaged in an activity like driving that does requires all your attention, try and say your affirmation when you’re fully stopped and can devote a little focus on them.

To truly do an affirmation properly, try to find a quiet place where you can focus all your attention on it.  Create a short positive phrase that states your desire as if this desire is already manifest.  For example you can say something like, “I have…  Now”.  It is important that you fine tune this phrase until it feels good to you.  You will be able to do this by paying attention how you feel when you say it. Within a matter of days of doing the exercise that I will outline below you will have the phrase that is perfect for you.

Now in this quiet place, begin to repeat this phrase to yourself.  Try to focus your attention completely on this affirmation.  You must try to focus your mind completely on this affirmation or you will end up with a jumbled mind that will not be able to focus on your desired outcome.  If your mind can’t stop from wandering around and thinking of thoughts that are not related to the affirmation, try and have your mind visualize the affirmation.  That is if your mind must wander then let it try and create visualizations of your affirmation.

Trying to repeat your affirmation, while focusing completely on it, for a good 10 minutes.  You will find that it is quite difficult to focus longer than this.  It is quite difficult for most of us to try and focus on a single thing for more than a few minutes, so 10 minutes is a very long time.  If you can over time increase this amount then this is good, but there is no big need to do this affirmation exercise longer than 10 minutes. 

I also recommend that you do this exercise twice a day.  Perhaps you will want to do it in the morning and then in the evening.  If you can’t do this, because of time constraints, then once a day is good.  The real power of this affirmation exercise is in the amount of focus that you are able to give it when you are doing it.

Many see great results in a matter of weeks.  Others find that they need to do this affirmation exercise for a longer period of time.  I would say that most beliefs and therefore great change in your life is possible in about 90 days.  Try to develop your rhythm, think of it as doing exercise and in this way you can create a routine that can change your life.  Affirmations work when done properly.

 

 

 

 

Keep Track Of Your Goals And Accomplish Anything

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In order to get things done you must keep track of your goals.  We all have certain things I we to accomplish, and we all have time schedules.  The only way that you can accomplish these desires is to be able to monitor what you have done and what you need to do.

Begin to keep track of your goals by asking yourself, “what have I done and so far”?  It is most important that you are honest with yourself and that you are able to see that the only way that you will overcome hurdles is to keep a very accurate record of the things that you have done so for.

By knowing how much you have done, you are able to see how much you have left to do.  In order to stay within the schedule and time-line, you must be able to know how much you have done and how much you have left.  It is therefore imperative that you keep careful track of your goals, because this is the only way that you will be able to meet a certain date.  This becomes very important when you have multiple projects or when you have a very difficult project.  The timeline is a very useful way to stay on schedule, to be able to do the things that you want, in that time that you want to do them.  But timelines don’t work, schedules don’t work, and goals don’t get accomplished when you do not keep track of how much you have done and how much you need to do.  You can only do this by keeping personal track of your accomplishments so far.

It is also very important that you adjust behavior while completing your goals.  Sometimes things change; sometimes objectives change or sometimes you find better ways to accomplish old goals.  In order to take complete advantage of all your abilities, and all your resources, you need to keep track of your goals. It then becomes possible to do fine tuned adjustments which will greatly help your actions.  A small mistake corrected early on can avoid huge problems in the future.  By staying on top of your current situation you are able to foresee and clip any problems either before they start or just after they’ve been made manifest.

It is often a good idea to keep some kind of little journal where you can record what you have done and all the things that you need to do.  This journal can become your good friend and your motivator to get you on schedule to accomplish whatever goal you have set for yourself.  It doesn’t have to be a very complex thing, just a little pad where you are able to jot down any inferences that you have made about your goals.  Most importantly you need to keep track of what ever changes you need to make in this little journal, so that it becomes a map and a key to getting everything that you need done.  You can come up with your own note style developing your own shorthand as you go,  just make sure that you keep the date posted on every entry that way you are able to keep track of schedules and posted times.

With this little journal, and using the questions that I have mentioned, you will be able to stay on target.  If you fail to do this, and the goals or tasks that you have set for yourself become too complex, you won’t be able to accomplish your desires.  Remember to check on yourself frequently, perhaps even once a day.  The more that you do this, the more efficient that you will become.  Keep track of your goals, jot down your observations on your journal, adjust your course or schedule as you see fit in order to succeed.  This way you will become very successful and very efficient.

 

 

 

How To Sorround Yourself With Positive People And Prosper

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It is very a important thing you learn to surround yourself with positive people. The kind of people that you surround yourself with has a great influence on how you deal with life and what your resources are.  It is therefore imperative that you surround yourself with people that will uplift you and will make you feel better, people that will provide a positive feedback, and will give you the positive energy that you need in order to be a success in life.

Others have an incredible influence on our mental state.  You know this yourself because when you find yourself in front of people that are negative you tend to have an influx of negative energy.  While positive people tend to bring up your energy and soon create new possibilities in your mind.  The reason for this is that you are a very receptive being whether you are aware of this were not.  We are all taking an incredible amounts of information, information that for the most part we are not even aware of.  The amount of this unconscious and conscious information is staggering and it also has a great effect on how we act, because our perceptions really are the basis of our actions. If we tend to not control our perceptions, we are bound to act in ways that are detrimental to us.

It is easy to see how others have an effect on our lives by thinking and remembering the relationship that we have with our parents.  It is easy to see that our parents have incredible influence in our lives, that for most of us what they say counts, and their energy has the ability to greatly regulate what we do.  Many could say that their chosen profession or even their partner is the result of the influence that our parents had on us.  Our friends and acquaintances can have great power over our actions as well.

I suggest therefore that you make a list of all of the people in your life.  This does not have to be a very long list, it can be a shorter list of the people that you spend the most time with in your life right now.  Separate the list into two parts, the first part being those people that uplift you and make you feel very good.  The second part of the list, will then be made up of those people that bring negative energy into your life, and make you feel less than and provide, providing very little positive input.

Now it is difficult of course for this list to be so black and white.  Some people there are positive at certain times and are negative at other times.  The idea though is to be able to have a decent assessment of all those that provide positivity for the most part and all those that provide negativity for the most part.  With this list you should be able to get good bearing on the kind of people that are uplifting you and the kind of people that are bringing you down.

Once you have finished this list, ask yourself why is it that some of these people are bringing negativity into my life.  Why is it that some of these people made me feel bad and bring mostly negativity to me?  This kind of personal questioning will allow you to find many answers that will hopefully provide the reasons why you are letting these people create such a negative influence in your life.

Now you have a personal option.  You can either confront these people personally and asked them why they are being negative.  This is a difficult thing because it is quite possible that some of these people actually feel some kind of resentment towards you and this can be a very difficult thing to confront, especially from those that you believe are your friends.  It will though be an incredibly powerful way for you to change and to see how your life and your actions are affecting those around you.

Your second option which might be easier but less self enlightening, is to try and surround yourself more with those that provide a positive influence and energy in your life.  This can still be a difficult process, because you must be strong enough to take the initiative and cut out from your life those that are bringing you down.

What you choose to do is up to you, but it is most important that you realize that these friends and acquaintances have an incredible influence on how you feel and the kind of success that you have in your life.  Take the time and energy to make this list and to question yourself.  You will find that it is an incredibly powerful way to change all aspects of your life.  Surround yourself with positive people for your own success and a better life.

 

 

 

 

Use Happy Calisthenics To Cure Depression

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I would like to share with you an exercise that I like to call, “Happy Calisthenics”. Sometimes it is very difficult to break a sad mood or a depressive state. Anyone who has found him/herself in the throes of a large depression, knows that stopping this kind of nasty blue state can be almost impossible. Most just opt to wait it out in the hopes that if they are patient enough it will go away.

The problem is that waiting around for these depressive states can be a bad thing. Often you make the situation worse by segregating yourself. If people don’t have experience in re-focusing their minds, they tend to spend this time by themselves focusing more and more on those things that put them in a bad state to begin with. Waiting then for things to get better is not the answer.

What you really need to do is to break the depressive routine. All things in life are given strength by the power of routine. This is the constant and repetitive action, whether mental or physical, that allows any state like this to develop a type of identity. Think of it as sort of like a recording; pressing play is a particular trigger like seeing something or having someone say something; after the play button is hit the body and mind robotically go through a very specific set of actions that initiate and enforce this depression or whatever bad mood is affecting you.  In order to destroy this depression then you have to destroy the routine that perpetuates it.

A great way to break a bad routine, or any routine for that matter, is to do something that is completely different from what makes up this particular routine. Happy calisthenics do this by having you perform a physical action that you normally would not do in that situation. These calisthenics are going to make you do something weird, silly, and perhaps even funny at a time when you definitely don’t feel like being any of these things.

It also works well because as I have told you before, the bodies physiology or body language has the amazing ability to change its mental and therefore emotional state. Changing your body postures and using stances that are highly different from your depressive routine will create a type of ‘state break’ that will literally jar you out of where you are mentally and emotionally at the moment.

First get yourself in a place where you can be by yourself. Then before you engage in any thinking at all, stand up straight and tall and put your arms straight up over your head. Bring your arms down, turn your head to the left, then to the right. Now puff out your cheeks, hold it, blow the air out in a big woosh and a smoothly as you can, start doing the twist. Start singing a little ‘Cubby Checker’ (look him up and youtube how to do the twist if you don’t know what I am talking about) and really get into the twist, try some new moves. Continue to do this for a least half a minute, then transition into a modern dance and do something like, ‘the flower opening its petals to the sun’. Finnish with some ballet twirls, remember to put your arms up, good posture is key in ballet. Finally finish by standing tall and straight again and force a big crazy grin on your face. Hold that grin for half a minute, and if you can laugh like the joker a few times.

Now this might seem funny now but when you are in a horrible funk it will just seem stupid. What you think here really doesn’t matter, just do it. Afterwards you might not feel that happy but you will feel a kind of shock, like you are disoriented and aren’t quite sure what to do. It is crucial that you don’t let yourself slide back into the depression routine again. Move on out of there as fast as you can and start doing something else.

If you are suffering from a horrible depression, if you think that things are beyond hope, then I dare you to do happy calisthenics in public.  Find a nice crowded street corner and do a fine Irish jig for all to admire and enjoy, try and keep a straight face, be professional. You will be cured faster than you can imagine. Happy calisthenics break routine, destroy the ego, and cure depression, so try it. I dare you!

 

 

 

 

You Can’t Get Rich Working Hard At It

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It is very difficult to get rich through hard work. You have to be able to come up with some kind of idea that will get you get you to the next level. Your imagination is the key.

First you have to get yourself out of poverty if you find yourself there. In order to do this you have to be able to find some work and to get paid well. You need to find a way to support yourself and your family, for this you will need to work. So yes this part of the equation does require that you do something to get paid. The idea is that you want to get to a point where you are past subsistence living.

Many of us find ourselves in this position. Anyone that has a 9 to 5 job most likely is doing this work in order to pay the bills and get by. Because most of us grew up hearing our parents telling us that an honest job was essential to good living, this kind of work ethic tends to come naturally to most.

The unfortunate thing is that most parents forget to tell their children that it is next to impossible to get rich doing this. It is possible that you might work your way up a certain company and eventually become executive management. This has been done and you could do it too if you have the talent. This however is quite a difficult thing and most fail.

What you need to realize is that once you have managed to find a job that allows you to pay for all your needs, you need to dedicate any extra time that you have to becoming wealthy. The fact of the matter is that if you stay at a regular job and try to work yourself into abundance, you will most likely not reach your goal. Most people work a regular job all their lives and retire hopefully on a decent pension, this is not a bad thing and for many this is quite lovely. As long as you have the time to be with your loved ones, do what you love on your spare time, and provide enough for yourself and your family, then all is well.

There are those that would like things differently. I think that with the power and sometimes indiscriminate attitudes of modern companies and bosses, more and more people are wanting to become wealthier, at least in order to free themselves from the ‘rat race’ and the dependency on others. If you are one of those people then you have to be made very aware of the fact that the only way to attain your dreams is to think of a way out of this dilemma. That is in order to find the abundance that you seek, you will have to come up with a way to make more money on your own and to stop believing that somehow you are going to get there by working all day and all night.

To find the answers to what you seek, I suggest that you use all of your spare time on that which you love to do. Try to spend as much time on this and see if there is a way that you can become better and better at your muse. What that hobby is, doesn’t matter. All things can lead to an abundant life if you are willing to dedicate enough time and effort to them.

Since effort is a difficult thing, the only way you will be able to put enough effort into a thing, is to dedicate more time to what you love to do. Work your regular job so that you are able to provide for all your needs, and then spend all of that extra time on doing and learning about what you love. When you do what you love there is no effort, just the passion to do. This passion should drive you to refine your talents and make you someone very good at what you do. Remember, You are not going to get rich working hard at it!

 

 

Exercise To Control Your Mind And Get More Positive

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How positive do you feel about the things in your life? Most people tend to believe that they are very positive but they seldom take stock of their own thoughts. They figure that since they feel alright, then things must be fine. And fine for many is basically positive.

There is a big difference though between feeling fine and alright and being positive and happy. If you are pretty good at ignoring your mind or have such a busy life that you are seldom conscious of your own thoughts, you tend to figure things are alright and you leave it at that. This would actually be fine if you are able to completely shut off the internal dialogue in your head but that is not ever really the case. The mind tends to work away even when you think you are too busy to notice. Even when you do engage in a concentration intensive task, any break in the work flow gets your mind going again.

I don’t mention these things with the idea to scare you or to make it seem like you have no control over your mind. The fact is that you do and if you do find something that you can dedicate a lot of positive attention to, you can greatly reduce that internal dialogue, whether positive or negative.

What I want to point out though is that your mind and therefore your internal dialogue, is hard to stop. Also I want to point out that its hard for us to really know our mind without self examination. With this in mind I wanted to give you an exercise that you could use to help your thought pattern. This exercise should help you to realize how you feel about many different things. It’s easy and can be fun if you approach it like a game:

I want you to make a list of the top 10 things that you think most about. To do this you might need to do some self examination; trying to pay attention to your thoughts and what you are thinking about throughout the day. But it isn’t a difficult task, most of us think mostly about the following:

  1. money
  2. clothes
  3. car
  4. friends
  5. career
  6. health
  7. food
  8. pets
  9. etc.

Now that you have your list, rate each one of the items on your list seeing how positively you feel about each one. Use a scale from 1 to 10, 1 being the least positive and 10 being the most positive. To do this, take money for example and contemplate it in general and in your life specifically. How to you feel about it, rate this feeling.

Now look at your list and see how you did. Were you generally positive or negative. As long as you do this exercise honestly, you will get a real good idea of how positive or negative you are at the moment. Use this knowledge so that you can begin to better understand your internal dialogue.

Now take an item on the list that you rated as being negative about. On your list, right beside the item, write down a positive picture or thought about the item. For example if you had a low number for money, write down some thought or picture that you could hold when you think about money that would make you feel more positive. And at the bottom in quotation marks, write down an affirmation that you could use to uplift you right away.

For example you could write:
I see myself in an incredibly beautiful and opulent restaurant in Monte Carlo, being served incredible food and drink by a amazing waiter. All around me I see incredible and beautiful things. I eat the best food in the most expensive china and crystal. I am treated like royalty and I deserve the best.
“ I am rich and wealthy, money flows to me naturally and effortlessly.”

If you then use this picture anytime that you have a money thought, you will see that you will begin to feel far more positive about this item on your list. The affirmation can be used at the same time or when you don’t have time to visualize (like when you are driving).

This is a fun exercise that will teach you a lot about your internal dialogue and how positive it is. If you follow the recommendations and create a positive picture for those things that you feel more negative about, you will change your internal dialogue for the better and get more positive.