28 Oct Mind your mind – take the neuro challenge [Part 2]
Hi there, thanks for checking back in. Let’s deep dive straight into it. In the last blog I introduced you to the ‘mind your mind neuro challenge’, a concept that is designed to turn negative thinking into positive thoughts. A process that will unquestionably, make your life a whole lot more fulfilling.
“Keep your values positive because your values become your destiny.”
Twenty tips to eradicate your negative thoughts
I promised to share twenty tips that would help you to catch negative thoughts within two minutes and prevent you from dwelling any further. Please do write this down somewhere so that they become a quick resource for you to tap into.
- I’ll come back to this at the end…
- Find your power move
This could be punching the air, clapping your hands, a fist punch on the chest. It’s a quick move that has power to it and enables you to reset your thoughts – find something that works for you - Ask yourself power questions
What am I grateful for? What could I be grateful for? Who do I love? Who loves me? What am I proud of? What am I excited about in my life? Come up with a series of questions that you can answer honestly - Question the negative thought
Find at least six different meanings for why this happened. Ask what else could this mean and ensure that some of the reasons are positive. Focus only on the positives in the future - Invest in a stretchy man!
It doesn’t have to be a stretchy man, but get one of those stress balls or a foamy squidgy shape and keep it in your bag or pocket. If you think about something negative, find the stretchy shape and give it a squeeze – it’s guaranteed to make you smile and feel better - Jump up and shout ‘woohoo’ Homer Simpson style!
It might sound funny but I promise this will change your state of mind for the better and it doesn’t matter if people look at you in amazement. You never need to worry about what other people think - Find pictures of amazing memories on your phone and revisit the joy of the moment
This is happiness literally in the palm of your hand! - Play a power anthem
Sing out loud, play the air guitar and get some movement into your stance. The focus and flow will make you feel ten times better - Do a dance
- Do a twirl
- Skip up and down living room, down the garden path, out of the classroom door
Another movement guaranteed to give you a little oomph - Splash in a puddle
- Play like an aeroplane
Pretend you’re a kid again, open your arms and make the ‘weee’ flying sound. It’s revitalisation in seconds! - Buy stickers
Invest in smiley faces, stars and hearts, comments that state ‘you are awesome’, ‘you’re a true superstar’. Put one on yourself and give them out to people around you. Who doesn’t love a sticker? - Carry out random acts of kindness
Cheer someone up by giving them a wave, a kind comment or a big cheesy grin. This will instantly change your focus - Keep a jar of inspirational quotes
Make your own quotes from magazine cutouts, a Pinterest board or buy a card pack. These quotes will be your personal fortune cookies or angel cards to give you an uplift - Give someone a hug
Hugs are brilliant. They are fantastic for you and release endorphins that are your own internal feel good factors - Ask Siri, Alexa or your chosen voice assistant to tell you a joke
It’s hilarious what they come out with - Give someone a sincere compliment
Do this in person, send a message or write it down on a post-it note – be true - Sip a cup of tea and savour a piece of cake
This great British tradition always makes everything appear better.
There you have it. Twenty top tips to nip a negative thought in the bud and begin your ongoing journey to thinking positive.
“A moment’s insight is sometimes worth a life’s experience .”
Oops I almost forgot tip number 1
Phew, that could have been a big let down! I wanted to come back to the first tip because it’s probably the most powerful one.
1. Memorise your favourite incantation
Let me explain what I mean by ‘incantation’.
You might have heard of affirmations and mantras, which are similar to incantations with a subtle difference. Affirmations are phrases that you would say over and over again and a mantra is an expression you would say when meditating or relaxing deeply, used to help calm your mind. I like to think that an incantation has a deeper purpose. Saying an incantation puts a spell on you. It’s a kind of self-hypnosis that uses all or many of your senses to work. An incantation uses your body, your voice, your energy and your visualisation to make it much more powerful.
I have a list of incantations stored on my laptop and phone, and a pack of physical cards. You can access all of these if you connect with me – drop me an email when you’re ready.
I’ll share a few now to give you a taste of their influence, but be open-minded about the concept – be positive like a sponge, not negative like a brick wall!
“Learn as if you were to live forever.”
Incantations to take away and use today
I love my life and I am blessed. Love flows through me.
Put a different emphasis on this to make it mean more to you such as a cultural or religious phrase.
I used to think that perfect was the only way to be but now I know that all I need is here inside of me. I appreciate and honour myself and when push comes to shove all I ever have to do is add a little bit of love
This one is for the perfectionists out there J
Every day in every way I feel better and better, yes
Every day in every way I feel stronger and stronger, yes
Every day in every way I feel happier and happier, yes
Every day in every way I feel more abundant, yes
This is really simple and you can substitute the emotional words to ones that mean more to you.
All I need is within me now
All I need is within me now
All I need is within me now
All I need is within me now
All I need is within me now
All I need is within me now
All I need is within me now
Emphasising different words in each sentence combined with repetition makes this hugely powerful.
When you say incantations with feeling and movement for five minutes they can very quickly reprogramme your neuro-network and, believe it or not, unconsciously discourage negative thinking.
Say these when you are in the shower, out running, walking to or from school, when alone in the evening in a warm quiet room, or wherever you find works for you.
Incantations will change your energy and rewire your thoughts. They are a great strategy to help with the ‘mind your mind neuro challenge.’ Are you up for the challenge? I bet you thought I’d forgotten!
Summarising the neuro challenge
The challenge is to get away from negative thoughts. You cannot dwell one anything negative for more than two minutes and if you do dwell on them for longer or if you find yourself coming back to negative elements later in the day you must reset your ten-day timeframe. It’s tough but it will make you more resilient and reinforce everything you’re trying to do to make outcomes better.
Change your thoughts, focus on positive feelings or back to day one. It’s that simple.
“Believe in yourself, take on your challenges, dig deep within yourself to conquer fears. Never let anyone bring you down. You got to keep going.”
Choose the life you want to lead
You will know by now that my life’s work is to focus on everyone having a happy, fulfilled life and to be stronger and more resilient towards the obstacles that life throws at you. As a teenager you face huge struggles in our fast paced world and times will not get any simpler so the only way to improve situations is to improve your outlook on life and state of mind. Stick with me and your life journey will be full of joy and excitement.
I’d love to hear your thoughts about incantations and how you get on with the neuro challenge. Connect with me on social and share anything publically or privately, I’m here to guide you to loving yourself every step of the way.
Until next time, stay positive every waking minute of your day.
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