What sort of stories are you telling about your goals? Are your stories full of enthusiasm, belief and action, or are they full of excuses and ‘becauses’? You may now know how important it is to tell the right story. The truth is, your Word is more powerful than you think. Have you noticed that the happiest people tell the most positive stories and the most miserable people tell stories of suffering and woe?
The thing is, it’s not the circumstances that create the story, it’s the story that creates the circumstances!
Your internal narrative and the way you talk to other people is a critical component of success. Your Word has energy behind it. If you say things like, “I’m sick and tired of… then you will actually become sick, and tired! If you say things like, “I love the challenge of…!” then you will approach the day with enthusiasm and drive. How does this work?
Try this little experiment, right now. Take a few minutes with no interruptions. Sit quietly and relax. Your first task is to say, “Nothing good ever happens to me.” Say it to yourself several times, and feel the physical reaction in your body. No matter what your mood was when you started, guaranteed, you are feeling blue now! We humans are emotional creatures. Our moods dictate our actions (otherwise it wouldn’t be so hard to stick to a diet). By creating a negative mood, you subconsciously sabotage your goals because now you just don’t feel like doing anything – because no matter what you do, “nothing good ever happens to me.”
The next step is to completely change the scenario. Paste a BIG smile on your face. I mean the biggest, cheesiest, silliest smile you can manage. It is physiologically impossible to smile and feel angry or sad! You can’t hold on to that negativity! Then, say to yourself, “Everything is coming together for me.” And feel the energy in your body change. Do you feel like taking action on your goals now? Sure you do! It feels good, and right, and the positive energy has totally transformed your ability to achieve!
Listen to yourself and see what sort of story you’re telling – do this any time you’re feel frustrated or stuck and you’ll notice that you’re telling yourself a story of drama, suffering, failure and all sorts of negativity.
Throw that story as far as you can and re-write it! We are hard-wired to tell stories. Our minds constantly attempt to explain what is going on around us – and that’s the key element right there – it’s the mind’s interpretation of an event that writes the story!
And YOU control your mind – when you are aware of what’s going on you can imprint the right thoughts in your mind, and then you can’t help but succeed!
Facts in and of themselves are just facts. Just raw data. It’s the story we create around them that dictates our experience! Think about that. If you took two people and put them in the same situation, their stories would be completely different.
Each story we tell is a complex tale that mixes our beliefs with current events, past events and emotions, and this goulash is what we tell ourselves and others. The thing is, much of the time these stories are created unconsciously and out of habit. And you can change your story, any time you want. You can go from:
- Nothing ever works out
- There’s too much competition, how will I stand out?
- I wish I had time to do stuff I love
- I would take care of myself better if I didn’t have so much work!
- I’m not smart enough…
- I’m not good enough…
- It takes money to make money
- Money is hard to come by
To:
- Everything works out perfectly – even if it’s not how I anticipated, I receive valuable lessons from this situation.
- For every talent and gift, there is an audience.
- I do what I love, because I choose to focus on what is important to me
- I make the time to take excellent care of myself
- I’m smart and I’m always looking for new knowledge and skills
- I’m capable and resourceful, and I’m always finding creative ways to accomplish things
- I’m resourceful and aware and I constantly notice opportunities to make money
- The less I worry about money, the easier it comes to me!
Listen to yourself next time you’re thinking or talking about your goals, and get in the habit of listening to yourself when you talk to other people. You may be shocked at how negative your Word is. These faulty stories are mostly based on fear, and if you change your stories to positive stories with a “can do” attitude, things will turn around for you very quickly!
Inspired by a blog by Dr. Maynard Brusman.