Does your brain need to be retrained? For most people, the answer is a resounding yes.
While we all live in the same physical world, our personal reality is dictated by the thoughts we think.
We unwittingly sell ourselves short, believe things about ourselves that aren’t true. We run on autopilot.
Most of the time, we’re thinking about the future or remembering the past.
Which is a pretty great way to bypass our current reality.
Our bodies can’t tell the difference between a thought about something in the past and something we’re currently experiencing. Which is why constantly ruminating on past events traps us in that old reality. We’re literally experiencing the same negative thoughts over and over again.
Chronic complaining trains your brain to be on the lookout for more negative things in life.
Our brains are lazy creatures. Do we wake up each day and think totally brand-new thoughts?
Heck no! For the most part, we think the same thoughts we had yesterday and the day before.
Which means we also feel the same way we did yesterday and the day before.
So if you’re looking to make a change in your life, it’s time to start examining those autopilot thoughts.
There are two kinds of thought patterns we can rewire here:
1. Things that are not empirically true. (Facts are undeniable but it’s the meaning we take from facts that can be challenged.)
2. Things that don’t benefit us. (ie. limiting beliefs. Is there any reason to walk around thinking you suck at math for twenty years? Believing something based on one or two past events becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy and a self-imposed limitation.)
So why continue to think those undesirable thoughts if they’re not serving you?
You simply need to decide to think a new thought instead – and then practice changing them.
After that, all you need to do is start switching out those old unhelpful thoughts for more positive ones. Affirmations are called that for a reason: they’re the kinds of thoughts that make us literally feel better.
They work in two ways: the constant repetition of them helps train your brain to think new thought patterns and imprints the feeling of the affirmation on your subconscious mind.
So now that you see how powerful affirmations can be, let’s learn how to make some:
How To Retrain Your Brain With Affirmations
How To Use Affirmations Step #1:
Make It Resonate
Affirmations are intensely personal, which means different ones will work better for different people. The biggest question to ask is does your intention speak to your soul? Don’t try to make something stick that doesn’t really work for you! If you listen to yourself, you’ll begin to intuitively know what kind of affirmations you need the most.
How To Use Affirmations Step #2:
Make It Present Tense
Time is a made-up concept. What you experience in the moment is all you really have! So make a statement about your present reality, not some reality far in the future.
This is the difference between:
I want to be abundant vs. I am abundant or My abundance is constantly constantly increasing.
Thinking in the future pushes your desired feeling into the future instead of bringing it into the present.
(Some people naturally know where they want to go in life; others need a little extra help. If you want to dive a little deeper on this part of your journey, I highly suggest checking out Danielle Laporte’s brilliant book The Desire Map.)
How To Use Affirmations Step #3:
Put It On Repeat
Affirmations work by helping rewire our brain, literally. The more often you use your affirmation, the more of an impact it will make.
But you don’t have to do it thousands of times to make a difference. Even a little practice can make an impact! We’re rewiring neural pathways in your mind so go ahead and experiment by using different affirmations.
I find they are the perfect thing to keep your brain occupied while doing menial tasks like waiting for the bus, driving or in the grocery line-up. But find what works best for you!
Affirmations might feel strange or fake at first – but that’s kind of the point! If you’re not used to thinking positive thoughts, then you’re one of the people who can benefit from affirmations the most. The more you practice stretching this mind muscle, the easier it will get! So stick with it.
I hope this gives you some insight into why affirmations are important.
Thank you so much for reading today friends!
PS Looking for more? You might also want to check out this post about how I manifested my dream home or this one about how to work with feng shui colors.
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