It is common for people to begin a time of reflection when we come to the end of a year. This is a good practice to engage in because it helps us prepare for the next year.
If I agree with what I just said, it would make sense for me to improve the process.
Would you agree?
Proper reflection will help me to determine what worked and what didn’t. Am I closer to where I want to be or have I drifted off course?
There is a tradition of setting New Year’s resolutions that interestingly enough goes way back to the Babylonian Empire but for our discussion, we will focus on more recent history. This practice is typically followed by about 45% of the population.
Truth be told, many of us keep setting the same resolutions every year with 92 % giving up within only a few weeks.
Why do you think that is? I’m no expert but I have a few ideas on what holds us back that will help develop a plan to overcome this “failure to launch’ syndrome.
A lot of research has been done regarding our mind and it’s development. They have determined our mind is actually comprised of two parts.
The Conscious Mind and the subconscious. Our Conscious mind is where we think and become aware of our surroundings. The subconscious is home to our feelings, Self-image, beliefs and in general our perception of our world.
A quick thought about the two minds. First, the conscious mind can take a thought and choose to accept or reject said thought. The subconscious mind must accept what the conscious mind accepts. It does not matter if the thought is real or imagined. It accepts as real what the conscious mind has accepted. Then, based on its conditioning and beliefs, the subconscious mind will have certain behaviors and take actions that determine our results.
Easy to see how important what we think about is to the results we get in our life. So it should follow that if we change the thoughts we accept, we can change our life.
Isn’t it interesting how the bible had this idea so long ago when Paul said we were to take every thought captive and that we are transformed by the renewal of our mind?
Another way to understand this would be to recognize our responses are actually habitually generated. One definition of the term Habit is: it is the prevailing disposition or character of a person’s thoughts and feelings: Their ‘mental makeup’
Over time, everything we have seen, heard, felt read or otherwise came into contact with has impacted the conditioning of our subconscious mind and has formed our habit. We take actions to the thoughts we accept and the results reflect those habits and conditioning.
We might also call this place our comfort zone.
How important is it to recognize the effect we can have on another person’s life simply by our interaction with them. Especially Children They are not born with the ability to accept or reject thoughts. Their minds are sponges in the first 6 years of their life and essentially they are, as I hear Roddy Galbraith describe “Tattooed in the crib by the beliefs of their tribe” They become a product of their environment and that environment becomes the source for our Conditioned Mind.
Maybe you have heard the saying, You will keep getting the same results if you keep doing the same things. Or something similar to that.
So when I decide I want something to change in my life, I need to recognize it is going to take me out of my comfort zone and literally be in conflict with my habits. In order to be successful, I will have to take the following steps.
4 Steps
- Decide what it is I really want. What thought will I accept as truth and truly pursue?
Napoleon Hill said the way to increase our persistence is to have an increased desire of what you want. When my desire is greater than the discomfort of staying where I am, I will acquire the persistence to persevere.
- Have a definite plan to achieve the result. Said plan must be in writing and one designed to achieve the desired goal. If the plan doesn’t work, I need to be willing to change it.
- Close my mind to Negative and discouraging influences. Fear of criticism is the number 1 killer of dreams.
- Develop a “mastermind’ of People who are interested in helping me acquire the success I desire.
Choosing the ideas I accept will eventually change the conditioning of my subconscious mind. Choosing positive ideas eliminates the negative limiting beliefs that may reside in the subconscious as a result of negative conditioning I may not have had control or choice over.
I think it will be a fun journey and would invite you to consider how you might change your life by changing your thinking.
Let me know how I can help.
