Spirit is the Life, Mind is the Builder and the Physical is the Result. ~Edgar Cayce (spiritualist, medical intuitive, psychic) The phrase, “mind is the builder” was the fundamental assertion behind all of the Edgar Cayce readings. In other words, your mind is the driving force and power to whom you already are, who you are becoming and what determines where you are going. Moreover, the idea that “a person is 100% responsible for their thoughts, feelings and actions” was also one of the main therapeutic tenants that characterized the American psychologist Albert Ellis in the 1950”s.
Ellis contended that your thinking creates your feelings, which then creates your behaviors and actions or reactions not the other way around. The idea that a person is solely responsible for their thoughts, feelings and behaviors can seem like a daunting prospect. The upside is although we are responsible for creating our foibles in life we are also divinely inspired to create for ourselves an exciting life with unlimited potential! So, empowering change in your world to most benefit your desires starts with shifting your thoughts.
It is essential then, to understand whether our thought processes are working for us or not, like a cat who goes round and round chasing his tail but never quite getting anywhere, stuck in an unending pattern. So, here are some tips to help get you unstuck, and better monitor your thinking so that you can direct your mind and keep you on track for achieving your life’s goals.
1. Visualize yourself in charge. For example, see yourself at the helm of ship, hands on the steering wheel and that your mind’s job is to keep the ship on course. Staying on course is easier when you actively monitor your thinking.
2. Attend to your own self talk. What are you saying about yourself and your world? If you are what you eat then you are what you speak and what you speak you become. Also, pay attention to how you language a desire. It is a curious thing, but most people verbalize more of what they don’t want than what they do want. We might say, “I can’t have a piece of cake” vs. “I choose to eat healthy”. Or “I don’t want to be sad, angry or depressed anymore” vs. “I want to be happy and peaceful”. Focus on where you are going vs. where you have been: keep your sights on the goal.
3. Stay in the here and now. Rather than talk about how you want to be in the future, work with the present. For example, if you desire to no longer smoke. How do you get there? “Today, right now I am a non-smoker” vs., “I can’t ever smoke again for the rest of my life”. Which sentence felt lighter, more doable? Also, the past no longer exists, been there done that, so only go to the past to remember learning and don’t down yourself for being fallible and making mistakes.
4. Labels and attributes are not who you are. An attribute would be a fixed description like I am 5’ft 6” tall and female. Also, people mistakenly think that their thoughts feelings and behaviors are who they are, indefinitely. For example, we might say “I am an anxious person vs. “I feel anxious when talking to a group of people”. Or “I’m a fat person, which has become a fixed thought instead of “I have fat on my body” which is flexible and provides room for change. In these cases the thought has the person instead of just being a thought. If it’s not working for you, throw it out and try on a new description or phrase.
As you begin the process of self-monitoring, or being the captain of your destiny, it may seem silly or even strange at first, but the more you actively practice the easier it will become. When first learning a sport, it was awkward at first, but then eventually became habit. Finally, when using the list as a guideline, it may also be easier if you visualize a blank billboard to throw these thoughts onto as you observe them and then go thru the checklist thereby giving “yourself” some distance to be more objective. Remember, “ thoughts are things, feelings are fleeting and behaviors are changeable”.
Go ahead and get started. Grab the wheel and get excited about directing changes in your life and allow yourself to have some fun while actively manifesting your heart’s desires!
Laura Delle Donne-Schmidt, LMHC, CHt. Master Practitioner of Rapid Resolution and Trauma Therapies, Certified Advanced Clinical Hypnosis, Certified Rational Emotive and Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and Director North Star Counseling Services.