Your Mind Should be Like Teflon

How do you stop your mind from being like Velcro and shift to being more like Teflon?

 

1. It starts with you first understanding your thinking style. Are you a Black and white thinking means seeing everything in extremes? Do you do mental filtering - only see the negative parts of situations. Do you overgeneralize – meaning do you believe that the results of one situation predict the results of all future situations? Do you jump to conclusions - believe that you know what others are thinking? Do you do emotional reasoning - believe that if you feel something it must be true. You might believe that because you feel anxious, there is something in a situation to be feared. Do you turn small problems into big ones or blow things out of proportion.
2. Write down why the negative thought is present. Writing versus thinking helps purge the thought out, and when you cansee the words on paper or a screen it is easier to make sense of it and move forward.
3. Practice mindfulness. Mindfulness creates a distance between yourself and your thoughts, allowing you to view yourself as separate from them.
4. Know your triggers. Certain people, situations, and circumstances may set into motion a seemingly endless stream of negative thoughts (or perhaps more than usual) so it’s important to be aware of them.
5. Use affirmations. When you wake up, open your eyes and feel gratitude for the new day. Write down daily affirmation.
6. Surround yourself with positive people.
7. Change the tone of your thoughts from negative to positive. Instead of thinking, “this isn’t going to work out” change your tone to, “even if there are bumps in the road, this is going to work out in my favor.”
8. Practice gratitude daily.