What you think and believe about yourself, the world, and your life has a powerful impact on your everyday existence. Unfortunately, some beliefs are downright destructive to the process of living a successful, fulfilling life. However, if you can identify those self-sabotaging thoughts, you can then work to banish them from your life for good. Review this list of unhelpful thoughts to see if any of them are familiar to you. If so, vow now to recognize when you’re thinking in these ways so you can replace negative, irrational thoughts with more positive, realistic ones.
1. “I’ll never have the life I want.” How can you continue to move forward and work toward accomplishing what you want if you believe this statement? Thinking in these terms, quite simply, relieves you of making any efforts whatsoever toward what you want. Discard this thought now.
• Replace it with a more positive concept like, “I work each day toward getting the life that I want to have and here’s how I can do it.”
2. “It’s just like my mom said; I won’t ever amount to anything.” We aren’t all lucky enough to have had super parents. You might have had a mom or dad who said demeaning statements to you or who just didn’t realize the potential you had.
• Releasing these long-standing, self-deprecating beliefs will do you a world of good! Free yourself from remaining loyal to your parent’s sentiments about you. Instead, create your own truth through the actions you take each day to live your best life.
3. “I’m not pretty or handsome enough to get the partner I want.” A good way to dispute this ill-conceived notion is to just look around you every day. Everyone who has a partner doesn’t meet the standards of Miss America and the Ken doll.
• Each person has her own unique look (unless you’re a twin or multiple). It’s okay if your hair isn’t perfect or you’re not as tall as you’d like to be.
• Take an honest look at yourself and notice your strengths–beautiful green eyes or as mall waist. If you’ve got characteristics that are changeable that you’d like to alter through your lifestyle, commit to changing those things. But the point is that every one finds a partner as long as they’re open to doing so.
4. “My life is like this because that’s just the way it is. I can’t do anything about it.” This fatalistic way of thinking will doom you to living a blah life waiting for something to happen. Why not turn the tables–instead of waiting for life to do something for you, take the bull by the horns and create your own life step by step, day by day.
• Identify the power you have to create the life that you want. Then use it to construct the life you seek.
5. “I’m not smart enough to get the job I want.” This type of thinking will only serve to convince you that you can’t have the career you pine for. Instead, recognize you don’t have to be the “sharpest tool in the shed” to land a job and create a career that brings you joy, confidence, and good fortune.
• Commit right now to take steps to do whatever is necessary to obtain the career you seek.
6. “Money problems keep plaguing me. My finances are out of my control.” This thought can be devastating to your life over the years. Recognize that you are 100% responsible for your finances. Also, it’s not how much money you make, its how much money you keep and save that will determine the kind of financial life you live.
• Take a long, hard look at your financial practices. Go see a budget counselor to help you get your bills paid off and most importantly, to write up a budget that will ensure you’ll save over the years regardless of the amount you earn.
Throw out these old, destructive beliefs and replace them with new, positive, more realistic ways of thinking. You can be successful in life, starting right now!
