There she is again - dukes up and ready for a fight. She lashes out with crippling words. Her intent is to inflict damage. "How could you be so stupid? There's no way it's going to work. You weren't trained for this. You're going to mess it up. I don't even know why you try. No one appreciates you anyway. They don't pay you enough to put up with all of this."
You want to run and hide. But there's nowhere to go, because the enemy is within you.
If this internal dialogue rings familiar, you are not alone. According to experts during each waking moment we speak about one thousand to three thousand words to ourselves. The scary news? About 75% percent of all of our internal dialogue is negative. We fret, we worry, and we beat ourselves up. It's as if everyday we give our internal enemy a new set of boxing gloves and say, "Come on, give me all you've got." The result is toxic. By choosing to let our thoughts to freely run their habituated negative course, we cause an enormous amount of unnecessary stress and strain on our bodies.
In his inspirational book, "Seeds of Greatness," Denis Waitley, shares the idea of planting now for a great future harvest. According to Waitley, "Each day we write our own destiny and are largely responsible through what we do today for what happens tomorrow. Most of the people who are defeated in life, cooperate in their own failure."
Just as you can't plant squash and expect to harvest carrots, you can't engage in negative thought patterns and expect a positive outcome. Knowing this, what better time to change your mental diet than now.
One of the ways you can begin to change your mental diet is to examine what you are serving up for breakfast. By taking an internal look at what typically happens in the morning, you can see how you set up you thinking for the rest of the day.
If your first thoughts in the morning sound like this: "Oh, I'm so tired. I can't believe I have to get up so early. I can hardly open my eyes. I just want to lay here . . . just fifteen minutes . . . just fifteen more minutes," the enemy has arrived.
It's time to cook up a healthier start by feeding yourself something new. One of the ways you can begin to plant seeds of greatness is to begin each morning with a B.A.N.G.:
Begin with
Affirmations and
Note your
Goals
Affirmations are positive phrases stated as if they were already true. "I'm a competent and capable individual. I can handle anything that comes my way today. I choose to make this a great day." Because your brain can handle one message at a time, your brain will believe what you tell it. By using morning affirmations, and then following up with other affirmations throughout the day you will be on the road to self-talk recovery.
Research has shown that by noting your goals you are more likely to accomplish them. By setting realistic daily goals and then visualizing yourself accomplishing them, you set forth a positive pattern that will benefit you throughout the day.
"Today I will make a positive difference in the world. Today I will spend quality time with my family. By the end of the day I will make someone smile. Today I will make a point to recognize all that is good in my life."
By starting your day with a B.A.N.G., and then following up with additional mental B.A.N.G.s throughout your day you can put on your own set of boxing gloves - an action that will have your internal enemy running for cover. |
