What are you choosing to pay attention to?
September 6, 2019If there is a sudden loud sound, your awareness will immediately focus there. Your inner thoughts can capture your attention in a slightly different, yet still commanding, way. They too get pulled toward what distracts us most. Unlike an external loud noise where we identify the source and then move on, with internal loud noise, it is often difficult to steer your focus away from the hypothetical issue, which quickly turns into worry.
Thoughts have weight – they can pull you down. Thoughts have height – they can lift you up. Thoughts have length – they can last a lifetime. What direction are you allowing your thoughts to take you?
Worry is, sadly, an inevitability of life. However, worry is rarely productive – so it’s crucial you not allow yourself to sit in that state for long. Treat those thoughts just like an external loud sound- identify its source, release it from your memory and move on.
Every time you’re pulled into unproductive thoughts, that’s the precise moment you need to relax and release. Here is how:
- Identify the thought – Is it good or bad?
- Observe how it makes you feel – Optimistic or pessimistic?
- Dispute the thought – Does this thought serve me well?
- Come up with an alternative (and more accurate) way of looking at what happened.
Now you know…
“I did then what I knew how to do. Now that I know better, I do better.” -Maya Angelou
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