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Before You Think That Next Thought!
by Harald Anderson
"Every thought we think is creating our future." -
Louise L. Hay
Researchers have discovered that the
average person thinks anywhere between 50,000 to 70,000 thoughts per
day. Since the majority of us spend anywhere from 16-18 hours awake each
day, we think a thought on average about every 1.1 seconds. That's a
whole lot of thinking going on. With this much thinking taking place
there is nothing more important than to focus that energy on a
meaningful goal that targets your objective. Whether you are an
individual or business manager looking to improve your own condition,
the GOAL is the instrument that puts order and purpose into all of this
thought energy. Your thoughts lead to action. Your actions create
habits. And the habits of your life will determine your ultimate
destiny.
The principal premise of the personal
development movement is that thoughts become things and that we get
whatever we focus upon most. The questions that I think are worth asking
are:
a) If thoughts are our currency for
acquiring what we want, then what is it that you are spending your
currency on?
b) Are you getting a good deal?
c) Are you experiencing the life you
deserve?
I have yet to meet someone who claims to
like setting goals. Most of us have tried goal setting at some point in
our life and failed and just decided it was too much of a hassle. When
we come to realize that the goal is comparable to a canvas for an artist
we then begin to recognize the importance of goals in channeling our
energy towards a desired purpose. The 60,000 thoughts are going to be
there day in and day out. It would make good sense to focus those
thoughts to an area that would result in a marked improvement of your
life.
We are all familiar with the retail
buying experience. We walk into a store. Locate the merchandise we want.
Pay for it. Take it home. I submit that we engage in this exact same
experience in designing our lives. Problem is that when our lives are
not going the way we want we are unwilling to admit that we created that
condition. It takes a great deal of courage to admit that our belief
system might need some rewiring if we are not leading the lives we want.
Look around you right now at your
surroundings. Everything that you own is a product of your thoughts.
Likewise, everything that you don't own is a product of your thoughts.
Some quality thoughts are considered "too expensive" to even
consider contemplating so we never even entertain them. When is the last
time that you reminded yourself how "awesome" you are in spite
of whatever problems are lurking in your life?
So we often spend our time with the
thoughts that are most real to us and the thoughts that we know we can
afford. Funny thing is that we have a budget of 60,000 thoughts each day
to create whatever we want. In spite of that possibility so much of
humanity traps itself in the "closeout thoughts aisle" and
then wonders why life has become a battle for basic survival.
Here are a few of the more famous
closeout aisle thought patterns:
"It's just the way I am. I can't
help it."
"I can't control what I think."
"They are just thoughts for Gods
sake! That doesn't matter!"
"I just feel that way and there is
nothing I can do about it."
The reality is that we CAN help it. There
is no more important skill in life than learning to control the focus of
our mind. In so doing, we can literally change our destiny. Every
decision you make stems for the viewpoint of what you think you are and
the value you place upon yourself. In the blink of an eye you can change
your beliefs of what is possible and recognize that those limitations
you encounter are all part of a flawed belief system.
I spent about thirty minutes trying to
log my thoughts. Within minutes I discovered that my focus was literally
"all over the universe." Hundreds of disjointed thoughts
entered and left my consciousness in a matter of minutes. Trying to keep
track of them all was an exercise in futility. What this simple exercise
taught me though was to understand the importance of goals. A goal
certainly adds a focus and structure to thinking. The more ambitious the
goal the more it forces us out of the "closeout aisle" and
into the realization that the biggest obstacle in our lives is usually
'us.' The one thing I can guarantee you is that you will spend your
thought budget every single day. Consciously or unconsciously you will
think one thought every 1.1 seconds. With this being the case don't you
think it might be a good idea to make a concerted effort to focus your
attention on the things that you want to create? Isn't that the entire
purpose behind having goals? Isn't that the entire purpose to happy
living?
A good friend of mine is working
diligently on expanding his business. The one thing he is focused on is
understanding that his growth in the past was a direct result of his
thinking. Now as he confronts the future he recognizes that his thinking
has become the obstacle to getting to the next level. Interesting
dilemma isn't it? You want to grow but you have to be willing to change
your thoughts to do so.
Sounds real easy until you have to
confront this issue yourself.
The one question that he reiterates to me
every time we speak is… "What would a person have to believe and
think about regularly to experience this?"
I have no doubt that within this question
lies all the wisdom that an individual or organization would ever need
to be able to achieve whatever they wanted.
"What would a person have to believe
and think about regularly to experience this?"
As I started asking myself that question
I began to uncover counterproductive illusions about beliefs, ideas and
thoughts that I nurture without even realizing it. Maybe you can relate?
It reminds of the comment Mark Twain once made when he said, "I
have been through some really terrible stressful things in my life...
some of them which actually happened."
The secret of business success is
ridiculously simple. So much so that we often dismiss it. What thoughts
have you planted that are creating your current experience? What
illusions do you regularly entertain that prevent you from being
responsible for every area of your life? You can blame others for the
unhappiness you feel, or you can take responsibility for your life. But
you cannot do both. You must make a choice.
The 'divinity that shapes your destiny'
is you!
Every day for the rest of your life you
will think roughly 60,000 thoughts. Unless you focus that energy into
some meaningful purpose you are doing yourself a huge disservice. Set
ambitious goals for yourself and you will be well on your way to
choosing the best thoughts energy can buy! The focus that this will
create in your life will speak volumes. A question that will assist you
in this regard whenever you experience a setback is: "What would a
person have to believe and think about regularly to experience
this?"
Think about what you think about, before
you think that next thought!
Be careful with what you agree with!
About the Author
Harald Anderson is the co-founder of
Artinspires.com a leading online gallery of Motivational Posters and
Inspirational Posters."When Art Inspires, Dreams Become Realities.
His goal in life is to become the kind of person that his dog already
thinks he is. http://www.artinspires.com
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