MANAGE YOUR MIND
Thought monitoring is a way to manage your mind.
Over the years learning from various teachers I have picked up this technique but the name ‘Thought Monitoring’ has come from Henry Grayson’s book ‘Mindful Loving’.
This practice is super effective in managing the mind and rewiring the brain. For more on rewiring the brain and neural pathways see ‘Rewiring Your Brain’ blog post.
Write each step on a post-it-note to remind yourself; the more you can put it into action the more it will become second nature, and will take a matter of seconds to implement.
When watching your mind invite a sense of humour. Laugh at yourself, we are all bonkers! (he he)
Step 1 - Becoming Aware
Notice when your inner peace is disturbed with a negative thought. Begin to observe your thoughts from a non-judgmental and loving place. At the beginning it can be helpful to jot down negative thoughts perhaps feelings of jealousy, comparison, shame, judging etc.
Step 2 - Pause
When you feel your emotion bubbling; Stop. Pause. Breathe. If we can find a moments pause before we react we can then consciously react to the situation, rather than habitually. We have a chance to take the reins.
Step 3 - Cancel Thought
As and when a negative thought comes in cut the cord immediately and banish the thought from your mind. Choose a phrase that has most power and meaning for you e.g. ‘I banish this thought’ ‘Cancel, clear’ ‘I cut the cord’ ‘Stop’. We simply cut the cord and wipe the slate clean.
Step 4 - Affirmations / positive phrase
Have a goto affirmation on standby e.g. ‘I am courages’ ‘I love myself’ ‘I trust the universe will provide’. Something that resonates to you. Something you want to manifest more of in your life.
Flip the thought into a positive and empowering phrase.
Step 5 - Flush It Out
As you begin to notice thought patterns journal about things that come up, be curious about why we’re thinking and feel that way. Why are we jealous? Why are we angry? Why are we self-doubting?
As you journal you begin to discover the root cause of the issue. Your perspective will begin to shift and it’s a great way to flush it out and let it go. Ask yourself questions? Do an unconscious stream of writing for 20/30 minutes, see what comes up.
What we focus on in our lives, we amplify. Our thoughts create our reality. Owning our thoughts and managing our mind is so important. This is something we need to be doing all day everyday. Write down the above exercise on a note card so you can reference it throughout your day. Once you’ve learnt the exercise you can implement it in a matter of seconds.
Photo by Uday Mittal on Unsplash