Many people whose lives seem to have spiraled out of control have no idea how to climb out of the pit of despair they find themselves in. They may feel that everything seem to go wrong and their situations get worse and worse. They lose their job, their marriage falls apart, and they may even lose their home, their children will be in depression, alcoholism or drug abuse. They may make a half-hearted attempt and when they don’t get the results they quit,and resign themselves to a life of strife and unhappiness,
Both positive words and negative words are powerful. In Matthew Jesus cursed the fig tree and it died. Have you ever heard that telling your plants positive things will help it grow. The same thing so for the negative things. If you tell yourself I will never amount to anything, you will never amount to anything. It’s how the universe is set up.
Don’t despair there is hope in turning your life around, it is possible, but you have to focus on the positive rather than the negative all the time.
1. Change the negative thoughts in your head.
If your like most people, you have a lot of negative tapes or thoughts that play over and over in your mind. Perhaps a teacher or a relative was critical and their comments have stayed stuck in your brain. Of you have failed to overcome certain obstacles in your life and now see yourself as a failure at everything.
All people are plagued by insecurities or doubts. Everyday I have to fight the thoughts in my head, I have to fight everything negative thing my mother said to me growing up. But we cannot dwell on them. Instead focus on your strengths and what you want to accomplish. Use empowering phrases such as I am safe, I can do this, I will change my life for the better, or when those thoughts come simply say “no”. We have the power to change our thought. Change the tapes in your mind to positive instead of negative.
2. Banish Naysayers
When you try to make positive changes in your life you will be upsetting the status quo. People who you thought were your friends may actively try to sabotage your efforts by telling you you’ll never make it. Mostly because you changing will not serve their needs. If someone is a doubting Debbie, you don’t need them in your life.
3. Surround yourself with inspirational people
There’s a saying the “birds of a feather stick together. The same applies to all types of people. Whether you’re a winner or a loser. Drug addicts like to associate with other drug addicts and dealers. The don’t buy drugs from each other and share paraphernalia.
Marathon runners associate with other runners. You join a gym where others train, and share fitness tips and gage their progress against their peers. If you want to turn your life around then seek out positive people who will inspire and motivate you. Do what ever it takes to cultivate new friendships and have a healthy support team.
4. Take Time To Breathe
Learning to meditate or breathing exercises or listening to inspirational music can help build a positive attitude, decrease stress and improve your mental acuity and give you hope to reframe your problems as manageable obstacles.
You can replace the negative tapes that play in your mind with positive ones. It may take a while. But the secret is repetition and consistency. I’ll never forget when someone told me, “I was allowed to change my thoughts.” We don’t have to keep believing those negative thoughts test are always running in our heads.
5. Set goals in writing
If you don’t have any goals to aspire to then you’re like a ship without a rudder. Directionless, glowing with the flow, at the mercy of others. If you want to turn your life around then you need to have some concrete goals and put them in writing gives them life. The simple act of putting pen to paper makes your goals real.
Use can use the SMART goal method:
- S – Specific
- M – Measurable
- A – Attainable
- R – Realistic
- T – Timely
Keep them in a binder or booklet and review them weekly. This will help keep you on track.
6. Visual reminders of goals
I write my goals on index cards and put them in every room so that every day I see it. For example if your goal is to buy a new car, you can cut out a picture of your dream car or all things you want to achieve. These reminders stimulate your brain and make you feel good, which inspires you and keeps you track.
7. Take care of your physical body
You need to take care of your body and your mind all your life. Fill your body with nutritious foods, Cut back on junk food. I hate cooking, and it’s so much easier to grab junk food. Every Saturday and Sunday I prepare meals for the week. Then I don’t have to cook during the week. Or you can make extra when you cook and put it in the freezer so when you don’t feel like cooking you can just put it in the microwave or heat it up to have a healthy meal.
8. Be grateful
It’s easy to become mired in all the things going wrong in your life or all the losses you’ve suffered. It only serves to depress your mood and keeps to stuck. Look how far you have come and what’s going well in your life. It may be as simple as remembering you have a roof over your head, food to eat and a bed to sleep in.
Be grateful for what you have in the here and now. It gives you a health perspective and opens the door for receiving more good in your life. It relieves stress, reduces depression, and reframes your thinking and opens the doors to possibly.
9. Pay it forward
Once your life turns around it will gather momentum. It may take time but if you follow the right steps things will improve. When they do you may want to think about paying it forward. If you see someone struggling like you have, share your story with them. Give them tips about how you improved your life circumstances. You can turn your life around and in doing so inspire others to do the same.
From Pity to Praise 