The Need to Eliminate Negative Thinking (originally published 11.21.2017)

Eliminate Negative Thinking

It sounds easy but it just might be one of the most difficult things you have ever tried to accomplish.

The reason is that we are surrounded not only by negative people, but also by negative influences from the media- Newspapers (dying breed mind you), Radio, Internet, Television, and more importantly from our own internalized negative programming.

Realize that a negative thought is not only the most obvious and most dreaded of internal programming, but these same thoughts can also be less obvious and more subtle.

The negative thoughts are like weeds, which when left to their own devices will choke out even a “single flower” or a positive thought. Your mind should be filled like a beautiful garden of positive thoughts.

This can’t be accomplished if you are full of negative programming.

Make an effort to eliminate the word “Can’t.”

The most useless phrase in the English language has to be “I can’t.” If that doesn’t set you up for failure, I don’t know what does. How can you even start to believe that you can accomplish anything when you use those words? It eliminates all possibilities from your mind.

The subconscious mind is such a powerful tool that many of us don’t realize what kind of programming we are giving it.

If you say “I can’t,” you have eliminated the need for your mind to find a solution.

You no longer need to find the answers or a reason for going ahead. If you catch yourself saying, “I can’t.” STOP IT! Immediately!

Try to be more positive on your outlook of the impossible. If you constantly remind yourself that you CAN do anything and therefore nothing is impossible, your mind will also register that.

We often overlook the negative programming that we received as kids and continue to receive as adults.

Statements such as “I never,” or “I am no good at,” or even “I hate.” These are statements that we constantly tell ourselves based on some negative past experience and it affects our internal programming whether we want it to or not.

One of the most prevalent, especially as it relates to Networking Events, is the ability to “remember names”. All too often I’ve heard people say, “I’m just no good at remembering names”.

Well, part of the problem, is you’ve already negatively programmed yourself. Now, whenever you don’t remember names, you don’t even feel bad about it. Why? Because you’ve given your subconscious a pass. There is no need to get better.

While there are many, many steps, tools and techniques for how to remember someone’s name, the FIRST step, is to tell yourself you’re good at it.

At a minimum, you can say, “I’m getting better at remembering names”. See the difference? Think about how that statement feels inside of you and your psyche. See what it does differently to your thought process?

No, imagine if you told yourself, “I’m pretty good at…..”, or even better, I’m GREAT at remembering names”. Eventually, you might just trick your subconscious into believing it, and you’ll actually get much better.

The simple things we tell yourself creates the programs we live by.

If you want to learn more about the effects of negative programming versus the benefits of positive programming, check out a great book called “What to Say When You Talk to Yourself.”

It opens your mind to the negative self-talk that can we can fall privy to.

Your mind can’t have a negative thought and positive thought at the same time.

Think of your mind like a garden, it can be filled with weeds (negative thoughts), or it can be filled with flowers (positive thoughts).

Imagine if you would an entire patch of garden that was dark, stark, spindly, and all the weeds had negative phrases on them.

Pretty bleak!

Now, watch how easy this is.

Imagine that same patch of garden being overgrown with beautiful, colorful, bright, bountiful flowers (yes, actually visualize this in your mind as it will create the renewed feelings and positive outputs).

Now, imagine each of those flowers having small phrases of encouragement, positives, empowerments.

Imagine the flowers saying, “I’m good at”, or “I’m always positive”, or “I appreciate other people”, or “I don’t get mad”.

You can imagine your garden filled with all kinds of wonderful things.

Then, whenever you start to think something bad, negative, angry, etc., just immediately switch to the garden in your mind with the outcomes you want to achieve.

So, as you go through your day, mind your garden with only positive thoughts.