Words are weapons. Thinking negatively about yourself can affect your life in many ways. We often become our own worst enemies when negative words rob us of self-confidence and peace of mind. If we don’t do anything about it, this lack of positivity can start to hurt our health, making us worried, stressed, and unable to truly relax and rest our minds.
If you find yourself in this position, don’t fear. It’s easer to fix than you think. Just follow these six practical steps to use postive self-talk and lift your confidence.
First, you have to catch yourself doing it. Before negative self-talk can get a foothold in your life, you can stop it with these three steps:
Write it out
Keeping a journal is an easy way to puzzle out your thoughts. Try writing down reflective thoughts about your day before you go to sleep. This helps you release feelings that have the potential keep you up at night if you let them go. When you read those entries again, you’ll get a clear picture of where you are. It’s possible that you’ve been more down than you thought. Consistently tracking your feelings and reflections keeps you in touch with your well-being.
Just say NO!
When you catch yourself dwelling on negative thoughts, stop them before iuthey become permanent. If you hear yourself saying something that brings you down, tell yourself “no” or “stop” immediately. If you need to, you can say “Stop” out loud.
A Physical Reminder
Psychologists have been telling people for years to use this therapy to stop those pesky negative thoughts. You wrap a rubber band around your wrist–make sure it’s not too tight. When that negative thought pops into your brain, just snap the rubber band. At some point, you’ll stop thinking those thoughts on your own just to avoid the “punishment.” Just like Pavlov’s dogs, but in reverse. 🙂
Now that the negative thoughts are quieted, follow these next three steps to use positive self-talk to your advantage:
Turn down the volume!
What word could you change to make the negative thought less painful? Instead of “stupid,” you might have been “mistaken.” You might be “thoughtful” instead of “slow.” By paying attention to what you say, you’ll start to talk to yourself in a more positive way.
Change Sides
Turn it into a game. Every time you hear yourself making a statement in your head, ask yourself if you can change the words to make them neutral or even positive. Try to change as many of these ideas as you can. The more the better.
Don’t be afraid to ask!
Turn negative assumptions into questions so you don’t have to listen to them. “That’s impossible,” for example, can become “How can I make that possible?” Questions are looking for answers, while statements have already chosen.
Tracking your emotions and impressions is useful for changing things with purpose. Once you get control of your emotions and thoughts, you’ll find life is much different. You’re much less stressed out and can even feel hopeful. You begin to like yourself more. Now, with the negativity turned down low, you can truly find out what you’re capable of. Try it!
Leave a Reply