It’s been proven that your mindset can have a major impact on how successful you are in life. Since your mind is a powerful thing, if you think positively, then it’s likely that good things will happen to you. The mind’s power is beyond our intellect as well as our emotions, making it a tool for spiritual growth.
However, this is easier said than done. The mind has a natural tendency to wander and get lost in negative thoughts, which can lead to depression or anxiety. Fortunately, there are many ways for us to combat negativity and stay positive every day!
In this blog post, we discuss what you should do when faced with negative thoughts so that they don’t affect your day-to-day life too much!
How to Harness the Power of the Mind
Think Positively
Our minds are like computers. Whatever data we feed into them is introduced to the brain and becomes our reality. This means that even tiny, nagging, subconscious negative thoughts can become large, impactful mental blocks because our minds are always processing information.
Therefore, the best way to maintain a positive mindset is by feeding it with positive thoughts and stimuli. You can do this by intentionally looking for and focusing on the good things in life. You can formalize this with an affirmation practice, a gratitude practice, or a mindfulness practice.
Avoid Comparing Yourself to Others
We are very social creatures that often assess our value and self-worth based on how we compare to others. Even though this is a natural instinct, it’s not good for our mental health if done too often.
This becomes especially dangerous in a competitive capitalist culture that always encourages us to always look for ways we can be better than others.
You shouldn’t compare yourself to anyone but yourself. By doing this, you don’t need to worry about what everyone else is doing and can focus on your own goals and aspirations.
Give Back to the Community
Contributing to your community is the healthy and healing response to competition and comparison. Giving back to others increases the feeling of meaningfulness in life. When our lives feel meaningful, the mind feels useful, and we are more motivated to live life to the fullest.
If you want to give back, you can do so in many ways! You can help out at a local organization, take part in a charity event, or simply donate some of your time and money.
Charity can come in even smaller and subtler forms, such as helping a neighbor or letting someone go in front of you in line at the grocery store. The mind keeps track of these “karmic” acts and, over time, a pattern of helpfulness will emerge.
Spend Time With Friends and Family
In order to keep the mind in a positive state, it’s important to surround yourself with other people who are also trying to maintain a healthy mindset. Spending time with friends and family is a great way to share positivity and have fun while keeping your mind in a positive state.
If you don’t already spend time with people who are positive, then it’s time to make some new friends! This can happen through volunteering at a local organization, joining a club or team, or going to meetups and networking events.
Practice Visualization Meditation
A visualization practice is one of the most powerful ways to nurture the mind and orient it towards your goals. This is because it uses the positive, subconscious parts of the mind to work as an antenna that can guide you forward.
One popular form of visualization involves creating an image of your future through deep intentional meditation. You can picture yourself in the future you want and actually step into this time. Ask yourself questions such as “How do I feel here? What does this place look like?”
The more that you use your senses to bring your future to life, the more you will believe that it’s possible.
Take Care of Your Body
Your body is the most important form of personal property that you have. It houses your mind and, as such, needs to be maintained in order to stay in good working order.
This means that you need to start caring for your body by eating healthy foods, getting enough exercise and sleep, and taking care of your mental health.
Allowing the body to get sick or deteriorate will put the mind in a negative state, making it harder to maintain a healthy mindset.
Taking rest is also an important part of caring for your body. While many people work overtime and then try to fit in extra chores and events on top of that, it’s important to have space between your activities so the mind can recharge.
Keep Learning & Stay Curious
Your mind is like a muscle that needs to be worked out. One of the best ways to do this is through learning new things or practicing your existing skills.
This can come in the form of picking up a new language, taking classes at your local community college or continuing education center, or even just reading a book.
Learning is also a powerful tool for combatting negativity, insecurity, and defensiveness. This is because it requires you to step outside of your comfort zone and try new things.
When you’re trying new things, you don’t have the same associations or expectations you have about old things, so it can help to open your mind. This is a great way to harness the power of your mind because when you remove limitations from the past, the mind is free to do anything.
Don’t Let Your Mind Control You!
Your mind can be a powerful tool, or it can be a prison. It all depends on what you do with it!
One way that the mind can control you is through limiting beliefs. This is when your subconscious tells you that something cannot be done in order to protect itself. These beliefs are often irrational and need to be replaced in order for us to stay in a healthy mindset.
Another way that our minds can control us is through fear of pain or fear of failure. This is where our minds tell us not to do things because they’ll hurt if we don’t succeed or it will make us look bad if we fail. This type of control may also come from perfectionism, which is when a person sets a standard that is impossible to achieve.
The final way that the mind can control you is through limiting habits and routines. This could mean watching too much TV and not getting enough exercise, or it could mean overindulging in comfort foods. Habits like these can take hold of your life and keep you from being healthy, happy, or productive.
If you feel that the mind is controlling how you live instead of living how you want to, learn how to shift control so that you are in charge of your mind.
Final Thoughts
The mind is like a muscle that needs to be worked out. If you feel as though your mind controls how you live instead of helping you to live how you want, then remember: it’s always possible to take control back from our minds by training them just like any other body part.
When our intentionality is combined with the power of the mind, nothing is impossible. Our future lives are bright and open, waiting for us to act on our dreams!