A Positive Mindset Archives ~ Page 2 of 5 ~ Committed to Your Success Coaching & Consulting

February 10, 2022

On Your Way to Being Happy – and Achieving More In Your Life

Happiness Is More Than Thinking Positive Thoughts

Everyone wants to be happy, don’t they? Reaching goals, making money, travel, finding love – they all bring happiness. Or do they?

While the dictionary defines happiness as “the state of being happy,” this gives you very little information about the idea or feeling of, or state of happiness. We all have heard of ‘living the dream’ – but does this mean being in a happy state?

Happiness is an internal state and will look different for each individual. Some look to fame and fortune to be happy, while others feel that way by just feeling the breeze. Defining what happiness means to you will lead you to seeking out what makes you happy and not just keep chasing it.

Let’s look at some different aspects that happiness can be, but realize that, in truth, happiness is in the mind of the beholder:

Your Needs are Met – When a person is happy, they usually don’t even have any needs that aren’t being met to the level they want them to be met. It doesn’t mean that someone is not having a hard time it’s all about how you make what you have fill your needs.

You Feel Satisfied – When you are happy you tend to feel simply satisfied with your life. You think about your life and feel good about it. You feel very satisfied when you look around your life and see all the fortune you have whether it’s where you live, who you live with, or just about yourself doesn’t even matter.

You Feel Content – A happy person tends to feel really content about the things in their life. They feel content about their job, their home, their things, their health – nothing is nagging at their mind about anything causing stress. But remember happy people do have stress, they’re just better at feeling content even when things aren’t perfect.

You Are at Peace – A happy person often feels a lot of peace surrounding their life and family. They tend to know that everything will turn out okay and are good at turning negativity around to positivity.

Your Definition – The truth is, happiness is how you define it personally for you. It’s not about getting tons of stuff unless you want that. It’s not about finding a spouse unless you want that. It’s not about having kids unless you want that. It’s all up to you and how you define happiness.

It’s a Journey – Happiness is not a destination that you get to one day and stay at. It’s a lifelong journey that will have many ups and downs and struggles. However, overall the ups and downs of life, you manage to feel good about it. In the 1989 movie, “Parenthood” one of the main characters, a mother, who is struggling states that she loves “the rollercoaster” of life while her husband is struggling and not as happy because he focuses on the downs instead of the ups.

It’s How You Act – When you are happy you tend to act in more positive ways over all. When happy, you eat better, you move more, you think differently. Don’t worry. You have it in your power to be happy where you are in your life right now.

Here are some quick tips to find your level of happiness:

Reflect – Take time to spend in self-reflection for your life – the good, the bad, the disappointments – each of these moments can show that you do have happy times throughout your life and, can then, focus on recreating that state to your present life.

Change Thoughts– reframing negative thoughts to positive ones will alter your neurons so you not only think happy, but feel that happy state of emotions. According to Mark Wahlberg, a neuroscience researcher, you need three positive thoughts to override one negative. Challenging your thoughts (“is this true?”) will create a new habit of positive thinking.

Practice Gratitude – make it a habit to practice gratitude daily. Write down at least three things (more is better) you are grateful for, and then do the same at the end of the day. This will bring more calm and peace into your life; you will see the good, which creates a sense of happiness.

Happiness is more than thinking positive thoughts. Happiness is having your needs met, but it’s not about having everything, or even the best, it’s about being satisfied with what you have while also being able to work for the things you want. While you do have to do more than think positively to really and truly feel happy, it does start with your thoughts. However, it will manifest with your actions. Follow the steps to get started.

March 9, 2020

Monday Morning Success Tip: An Easy Way to Change Mindset

As a certified Law of Attraction Coach, using the power of your mind to manifest your desires is more than what you think – just saying what you want won’t bring it to you immediately. It is not like I Dream of Jeannie, where you can nod your head and “poof” it appears. When we manifest, it creates a desired intention that elicits a positive emotion and keeps us focused on attaining that desire.

According to the Law of Attraction, action offered from a place of contradicted thought is hard, unsatisfying work and does not produce good results; but when you feel really good about jumping into action, it is a clear sign that you are offering thoughts that are in line with your desires.

Unless you are focusing on what is important to you, you can not achieve what you truly desire. By choosing a thought that feels slightly better than the thoughts you have been thinking, you can gradually change your direction. When you focus on a better-feeling thought, the balance of your thoughts will improve.

As our brains place focus on the last thing it hears, it’s important to not let them be negative ones. Start today to change your thoughts from what you don’t want to what you do. Keep the focus by repeating your desire and enjoy the positive emotion you feel. It’s a simple, but effective exercise. Do this daily and see how your life changes for the better.

If you’re ready to get started manifesting your desires, call today as I’d love to partner with you in creating the life you want. Feel free to share this with others who may want more in their lives.

I hope you have a productive week – make it a successful one!

March 4, 2020

It’s March Fourth and Do Something Day

Today is March Fourth and Do Something Day (I said there are celebrations for everything) and, since we’re in this first week of March, what are your plans for what you want the next 31 days to look like? Now is the time to make new plans, new goals, new thresholds for what you want in your business. I like the premise of doing something you’ve not done before – challenging yourself- with the idea of marching forward. They both go together wonderfully:

What is on your ‘to do’ or bucket list? What did you say you would do in those resolutions a couple months back? What are you feeling you need more of are ready to do? Answering these questions will help you to make a decision on a specific action you want to accomplish by March 31
Start with choosing one of those (not to overwhelm) and write it out very specifically, i.e. I will be in my new job as an IT software developer by March 31. What this does is create a visual on the goal, which the brain will latch on to and want to achieve it, as well as giving it a deadline. The more specific we are, the more compelling it becomes and then we will seek out the ways to get it.
Write out every possible action you would need to take to get that goal accomplished; this is not about limiting but about every possibility out there – this is where you may need to ‘leap’ and stretch in what those may be. Work backwards from March 31 (you with a successful team or business), thinking of what it took to get there; this will really expand the creative side of the brain to come up with ideas you might not think of in a conscious state (left side).
Armed now with a goal and specific steps to take, make the leap; decide what time you will make it to hold yourself accountable and get mentally prepared. Then, begin. It may feel a bit scary at first but the more you, the easier it will become and the faster results you will see.

The key to any of these is taking action and doing something that, while it may feel uncomfortable, will move you achieving your business goals. Ensuring you have a good mindset is the driver for all behavior and goal-achievement, so take time each morning to create a positive mindset – say gratitude, have goals, use positive self-talk, breathe to energize your brain, and affirm your intentions. Practicing this daily will create a new habit that will lead to your success.

If you’re ‘stuck’ and want to stop the struggle, then contact us to day to change this around.

February 13, 2020

Do You Suffer From Imposter Syndrome?

A rather disturbing trend I’m seeing with clients lately is that of imposter syndrome. If you’re not familiar with the term, it essentially means that one feels as if they are a fake or are just skating through, and they constantly worry that they will be ‘found out.’ More formally, it is self-doubt about one’s accomplishments and worry of being exposed as a fraud.

Low or lack of self-esteem is at the root of this syndrome. When one does not feel good about themselves, they will attach this negative view to their skills, abilities, and achievements despite being proficient in them, such as an individual who is promoted to a supervisor role but doesn’t feel they should have the job or are being effective. This could lead them to hide in the background, allowing their peers to take more of a leader role, or to be hesitant when making decisions.

Imposter syndrome is a form of self-sabotage where one does not feel they deserve to have the things they want, either never going after them or, once having them, do something to mess it up (i.e. continually late for work, don’t finish projects, etc.). These negative feelings only lead to more negativity, along with stress and anxiety and a host of physical and emotional problems if left unattended.

Here are three quick tips to help you stop this cycle so you can live more authentically and successfully:

1. Be self-aware – the only way to create new habits (which is what you will be doing) is to be aware of your thoughts, feelings, actions, etc. Pay attention to your thoughts and body sensations when you start to have a negative thought about yourself or you have a physical feeling, such as a tightness in your chest of stomach, jittery, neck or back pain, and the like. This is when you want to…..

2. STOP – when you are aware of your thoughts and feelings,you can then slow them down so they don’t get out of control. Taking deep breaths is a great way to gain control over your head and body so you can now think more clearly. Deep breathing is a great brain refresher, also, which helps with focus and attention.

3. Own your ‘stuff’ – you must begin to recognize your greatness; write down daily any compliments you hear, actions people take, i.e. holding the door open for you or letting you into traffic, as people recognize you; also write down any actions you take towards others as well as any accomplishments you have during the day – no matter if big or small. This helps with self-esteem and self-belief, both of which lead to being confident in all areas of your life.

By creating new positive habits, the imposter mask will fall off and you will be able to stand fully in your authenticity and do your best work. You will feel confident in taking advantage of opportunities and be present with others. Using the above techniques daily will help you to be your own champion and stand fully in your excellence.

If you want to stop the struggle and get clarity on your business or career goals, why not get some help – contact me today to get started.

January 24, 2020

The Root Cause of Not Putting Yourself Out There and How to Break Free

I was in a Facebook group the other day and was quite surprised at answers that were given to a question, which related to marketing activities. Not only were there many similarities but what was surprising was how many had the same response, which related to not putting themselves out there to market themselves.

This is a common issue, one which I will admit I have struggled with myself. The worry about being visible and being a thought-leader scares many, both small business owners and those who work in an organization. This worry transcends across all genders and ages. If not caught early, the results can be detrimental to success.

Why does this occur and can anything be done to stop or reverse it? It really comes down to thoughts and emotions and imprinting that was done at an early age. Getting to the root cause will be easier to challenge the thoughts and stop the cycle. Irrational fears result from those early experiences.

If you think back to a time, say when you were six, and you got yelled at by a teacher or parent it may lead to worry about getting yelled at for other experiences. If you were compared to your sibling or classmates (the nuns in my grade school were good for this one), then your thoughts may turn to not being pretty enough.

The more we hold on to these thoughts, as if we’re replaying a movie, the more embedded they become in our unconscious mind waiting there to arise in the most inopportune times, such as when you are going to ask the boss for a raise or promotion. Our unconscious mind really controls our thoughts and resulting actions, as that is where 98% of those unconscious thoughts live.

The key to breaking free is to identify those thoughts and experiences you’ve lived through. They were in the past so it becomes about leaving them there or putting them in a place you can put them, i.e. think of a box. Mark Waldman, a neuroscience expert, says that you can write down all your worries, concerns, problems, etc. but not to hide them as the brain will worry about them.

When we allow these negative thoughts and events to have life, they become bigger than we want and ultimately result in holding back from new experiences to avoid what occurred in the past. As you don’t know if any event will occur with absolute certainty, you are wasting a lot of time worrying about something you don’t know versus going forward on what you do want.

Say you want to ask for a promotion, you don’t know if the boss will say no; but, even if he does, it could open up the door to discussing future opportunities. Perhaps there is no budget for a new position or no opening; however, he could find a project to work on that would provide opportunity to enhance your skills and raise your profile for when an opening becomes available. It can feel like you’re up against a brick wall, with no way over or through.

The key to breaking free from these blockages is to release them. Identify the source, challenge any thoughts around them, then replace them with positive ones. I find this practice very helpful when I get blocked and know they work. It will take practice to get out this negative pattern but, with consistency and a positive mindset you will get there. Is today the day you decide to release your blocks?