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Achieve Your Vision One Step at a Time

Achieve Your Vision One Step at a Time

by Linda-Ann Stewart

Steps to Success

Grace’s desk was piled high and deep with paid bills, papers she needed to file, old mail to go through, and current projects she was working on. Because of the disorder, when she looked for something, she couldn’t find it. But every time she considered wading through it all, she felt overwhelmed, and would do something else.

Eventually, she decided to set aside 10 minutes a day to work on her pile. The was all the time she could handle at one time. It took a couple of weeks, but by chipping away at it, the pile slowly diminished. Finally, one day, it was small enough that she felt she could spend more time on the project. 90 minutes later, the disorder was gone.

What’s Your End Result?

It’s important with any goal, vision or intention to keep the end result in mind. But sometimes, you don’t have the necessary belief that you can accomplish the goal. Grace knew she wanted an organized desk, but couldn’t face going through all the papers in one sitting. So she started with the amount of time that was comfortable, what worked for her, and what she believed she could reasonably commit to.

When you have a goal, make sure that it’s reasonable and you believe it can be achieved. If you don’t have that necessary belief, then your subconscious mind will make sure it won’t be accomplished. Your subconscious works on the level of conviction you have that your vision is within your grasp. If you don’t have that belief, then start with what you do feel is possible.

How to Accomplish Your Goal

Keeping your outcome in mind, create a series of steps that will take you to your goal. Your first step should be one that you know you can handle. If you want to begin exercising, start with taking a 5 minute walk, if you know you can commit to that. To lose weight, work on the goal 5 pounds at a time.

Make sure the steps are within your control. For instance, if you want to dig yourself out from a mountain of debt, hoping to win the lottery is an unreasonable solution and subject to chance. Instead, address your current budget, which is within your control. What can you eliminate or reduce? Can you increase your income, either through a raise or creating a side business? What actions do you know you can take? Focus on the impacts you can reasonably make towards your goal and work on them. You have the power to find the solution, but you may have to take it a bit at a time.

Some people have a hard time believing they can find another job. If that’s the case, just take it one step at a time. First, work on your resume. Then, start looking for jobs in your area of expertise. Set up interviews. Make sure that each step is one that you know you can fulfill. Once you’ve completed one, move onto the next. Every day, spend a few minutes on some action that moves you in the direction of your goal.

Your Belief Plays a Part

Unless you believe you can accomplish the steps on the way to your goal, your subconscious won’t help you. Instead, you’ll discover that you’re sabotaging yourself. When you commit yourself to take action that’s within your control, it convinces the subconscious to support you. Succeeding steps may be easier, or important information may come your way. Create your intention and start working towards it from the location of your current belief.

The subconscious follows your focus. As you accomplish each step, your belief that you can ultimately achieve your goal will grow. Each completed step builds your belief in yourself and in your abilities. Moving towards your goal, step by step, will take you to your goal.

Affirmation:

My goal is within my grasp. What I can believe, I can achieve. Each step I take brings me closer to the fulfillment of my vision. As I move towards it, the Universe brings me everything I need to accomplish it.

As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html

Improve Your Life As You Sleep

Improve Your Life As You Sleep

by Linda-Ann Stewart

Many years ago, a hypnotherapist told me that she would make a hypnosis tape of her goals to listen to as she went to sleep. When she mentioned this, I remembered that, years before, I’d made myself an affirmation tape to listen to as I drifted off, and the ideas on that tape had made a significant difference in my life. On many occasions since then, I’ve had a tape playing as I go to sleep. As with the affirmations, the goals and concepts on my tape tend to become realities in my life.

Many times, a client would come to me and tell me that the only time that they can listen to the reinforcement tape of their session was as they’re going to sleep. I told them, “That’s fine. As a person goes to sleep, they’re going through the same level of awareness that we use in hypnosis.” I went on to explain that it generally takes longer than thirty minutes to get into the deep level of sleep, and even then the subconscious is still hearing and listening to what’s being said. Have you ever been deeply asleep, and had a strange sound bring you wide-awake? That’s the subconscious mind monitoring your environment and recognizing when there’s something unusual or dangerous, and waking you to deal with it.

Using Affirmations as You Drift Off

But a person doesn’t need an audiotape to utilize this excellent time. Just repeating an affirmation as you go to sleep is a great way to imprint new concepts, goals and ideas. Joseph Murphy, author of many books on the subconscious, suggested repeating the word “Wealth,” rather than “I am wealthy” to avoid any resistance from the subconscious. “I am wealthy” might bring up arguments that “No, I’m not,” “I don’t have a cent to my name,” etc. Simply saying “Wealth” brings up the images and feelings of being well taken care of, which is what impresses the subconscious.

Many people use the time before sleep to think of a problem they have, and then affirm, “I’ll have the answer to it in the morning.” There is now research to support that sleep can be a creative time. If a person believes that their subconscious will be working on a solution, then they will awaken with the answer. A study has found that the person who “Sleeps on it” will be twice as likely to awaken with insights and solutions than the person who stays awake to think and worry about the problem.

Program Your Goals as You Sleep

One of my colleagues calls the time before sleep “My time.” When he has a particular goal, he uses his imagination to make it real for him. He visualizes how it would feel to have accomplished it, and lets his subconscious figure out the way to make it happen. By doing this, he went from having barely enough to live on to owning a beautiful house, investments, and retiring at an early age.

Decide on one area of your life that you want to improve. Then find a short affirmation or word that embodies your desire. Use your imagination to visualize your goal as if it were already accomplished. To reduce weight, imagine yourself at your perfect weight, exercising and enjoying the activity, leaving food on your plate, feeling slim and energetic. To stop smoking, imagine yourself saying, “No thank you” to a cigarette, being free of urges, and being able to breathe better. For prosperity, imagine your bank account at a particular amount by a certain date. If you want more appreciation at work, imagine being congratulated on a job well done, being promoted, feeling satisfied.

When I wake up in the middle of the night, I usually repeat the phrase “I open my mind to receive more Good” as I drift back off to sleep. It’s short and simple enough that I don’t have to work to remember it. Drifting off to sleep is one of the best times to impress new information into the subconscious mind. If you consistently use this time to program your mind with what you want, you’ll find that your life improves drastically in a very short time.

Affirmation:

As I drift off to sleep, I program my mind with the goal that is most important to me. I open my mind to receive more of the Good that Life wants to give me. I know that my subconscious mind is very creative, and has all the knowledge and resources it needs to find the solution. I am guided in the direction I need to go to make real my desire. Everything I need for the accomplishment of my goal is provided. I trust my subconscious mind to figure out how to bring about my desire.

As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html

Use Your Decisions to Sculpt Your Life

Use Your Decisions to Sculpt Your Life

Are you living the life you want? There are so many choices that you have to make. But only some of them will lead to decisions that are in alignment with your desires. Learn a mindset shift so those decisions will support your goals. Watch Use Your Decisions to Sculpt Your Life.

Transcript:

Welcome. Are your decisions bringing you the results you want? If not, I’d like to give you a mindset shift on how to make choices that will help you to meet your goals.

I’m Linda-Ann Stewart, a focus mentor and hypnotherapist. These videos are dedicated to empower you to focus and align your heart with your vision so you can achieve your goals.

If you aren’t living the life you want, it may be because of the choices you’ve made in the past. Now, you make decisions every day, right? Some are made deliberately and you take action to follow through on them. But others are made by default, following the path of least resistance. They could be old patterns from the past or just what’s easiest in the moment.

Those default decisions rarely bring you anything new. You’ll just end up with what you already have. Doesn’t this sound like, “If you always do what you’ve always done, then you’ll always get what you’ve always gotten?” It’s because it’s true. But you can change that.

When you want a different outcome, you have to make a choice based on your goal or vision, right? Something different than what you’ve had. And for a new result, you have to eliminate all but the choices that lead to the outcome you want.

It’s like being the sculptor of your life. When asked how he sculpted his masterpieces, Michelangelo said the finished product was already in the stone. He just chipped away at whatever wasn’t a part of that image. He chipped away whatever was superfluous.

That’s what making a choice is for you. You choose decisions that carve out everything that doesn’t align with your ultimate vision. With the result you want.

Stay focused on making the decisions that actively support your goals and then avoid everything that doesn’t. Be like Michelangelo in pursuit of your result. Make decisions that chip away everything that doesn’t contribute to your vision. And you’ll end up with a masterpiece of your life. Thank you for watching. If you liked this video, please give it a thumbs up. And if you’d like to be notified when I release more videos on mindset, motivation and empowerment, please like my YouTube channel and click on the bell. As always, stay focused.

Read the accompanying article, Decisions Design Your Destiny.

Decisions Design Your Destiny

Decisions Design Your Destiny

by Linda-Ann Stewart

You make decisions every day, such as what to eat, what to wear, what task to do, what to say, and much more. The life you have today is based on the choices you’ve made in the past. You choose what you want, either consciously or unconsciously. Then your choice leads to making a decision, which then results in some sort of outcome. The decisions you make today will create the life you have tomorrow and beyond.

Your decisions channel the energy of the Universe. Have your decisions brought you the results you want? If you don’t like your outcomes, your power lies in being able to make different choices. But what is it that really makes you choose what you do?

What Influences Your Decisions?

There are some basic motivations that compel your decisions. Once you understand what influences your choices, you can adjust them.

Expediency. You quickly make a choice so you can move onto something else.

Past Beliefs. Old ideas unconsciously drive your choices, which may undermine what you consciously want.

Habit. You automatically fall into an old pattern of choice without thinking about it.

Fear. This can prompt you to avoid making a choice, or it can cause you to take action because of the consequences if you don’t.

Desire. You have something you really want, so you choose to go for it.

Goals. You use your goals as a frame for your choices.  

Your Decisions Create Your Life

When you make a choice, you have to abandon other options and possibilities. When you ask for Divine Guidance, the answer often becomes clear. Once you’ve chosen your course of action, follow through on it. And each decision brings consequences, or rewards and positive outcomes.

If your decision hasn’t brought what you want, reassess your original choice. Is it in alignment with your defined goal, vision or your intention? If not, and you were to choose differently, what would your choice be? Make a different decision based on your new choice.

When your decision leads you to what you’d hoped for, then it’s done its work. Each decision, and the action you take concerning it, creates your life. When you make a choice, it sets in motion the power of the Universe. You have the power. Choose your decisions according to the life you want to be living.

Affirmation:

I am divinely guided to make the best decision that brings me my Highest Good. The One Life within me leads and directs my thoughts and choices. I realize that when I make a decision, it sets the power of the Universe in motion. Divine right action takes place in all areas of my life. Only good comes to and through me.   

As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html

What Are You Choosing?

What Are You Choosing?

by Linda-Ann Stewart

Time for Change Dial

When a smoker comes to see me, many times they tell me they feel controlled by their cigarettes. I remind them that they have the choice whether to smoke or not. Not smoking may result in a brief period of mental/emotional discomfort, but they can say “No” to a cigarette. Their subconscious mind is simply following the direction of what the conscious mind once told it to do. Their decision to smoke seemed appropriate at the time that they first began the habit. The subconscious is still operating on that decision, even though they now want to make a different one. It still is a matter of choice and communicating that choice to the subconscious.

Many times, we make choices that then take on a life of their own. They operate under our mental radar, and we’re not even aware that they’re there. It’s like installing a program on our computer, and having it run in the background. We tend to forget it’s there, even if it begins interfering with the functioning of our computer.

How We Make Decisions

We make decisions based on the best information at the time. As children, we try to fit into a strange world, and learn how to survive there. We take on the attitudes of those who are powerful, such as parents, as a way to gain acceptance, safety and security. When we grow up, we don’t need those same survival strategies, but they continue to function because we haven’t made any attempt to change them.

The automatic programs can be physical ones, such as smoking or overeating to avoid uncomfortable feelings. Or they can be mental/emotional programs of feeling like a victim, having low self-esteem, difficulties with money, or pessimistic thinking. The past choices we’ve made were reasonable at a specific time and place in our lives, but now they’re no longer helping us anymore. Actually, they may be causing us harm. But unless you give the subconscious different instructions, it will continue to operate those old programs, thinking that it’s still what you want.

How We Change Our Choice

One of the first things I do for many of my clients is to make them aware of when their habitual program kicks in. Many of my smoking clients think that they smoke all the time, only to discover that there are only certain times or places that trigger the desire. The same is true of clients who have low self-esteem. They may feel competent doing their job, but as soon as someone criticizes them, they feel worthless. After we discover when the mental program begins to run, we work on retraining the subconscious to think differently.

But first, we have to become consciously aware of the choice. Bringing it out of the shadows, where it’s been operating, and into the light so we can assess it and make a different decision. When we first begin to change the program, the subconscious may rebel by seeming to make the habit more entrenched or causing chaos. It’s just acting on the original instructions of the conscious mind. The subconscious must follow the directions of the conscious mind, and as long as the conscious mind stays focused on the goal, the inner mind will follow.

Be Consistent

Every moment of every day, we’re making choices, whether they’re ones operating automatically or ones we make consciously. If there are areas of your life that aren’t working for your good anymore, then become aware of the reason you made the original choice and make a new one. Figure out what you need to do every time that program begins to run, become aware of it, and then implement the new choice every single time it shows up. You have to make a firm, new choice, and act on it every time, or the subconscious won’t believe the conscious mind is really serious about it.

It’s very simple, but not necessarily easy. There may be some discomfort as you make the changes, just like when you part your hair in a different place. It feels strange at first. But soon your subconscious will recognize your determination, realize that it’s okay to make that change, and will then act on the new instructions. But first you need to be aware of your choices and make a new decision.

Affirmation:

I now choose to become consciously aware of past decisions that I’ve made that are no longer serving a positive purpose in my life. I recognize that they seemed reasonable and appropriate when they were first made, but they are no longer helpful. I now create a new mental program to alert me when the remnant of the old choice starts to operate. As I become aware of it, I now substitute the new choice I’ve made. My subconscious mind now understands that it is safe and better for me in the present to accept the new programming.

As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html

Is Your Glass Half-Full Or Half-Empty?

Is Your Glass Half-Full Or Half-Empty?

by Linda-Ann Stewart

I’m sure you’ve heard of the test to determine if a person is an optimist or a pessimist. Imagine a table with a glass with water in fifty percent of it. A person is asked “Is the glass half-full or half-empty?” Disregarding whether the glass has just had water poured into it, or half of the water poured out, the optimist will say “Half-full,” and the pessimist will say “Half-empty.” Both are right, and both are looking at the glass from their own perspective, through their own mental filters. Those filters also affect the way they look at the rest of their lives.

The Difference Between a Pessimist and an Optimist

The pessimist will expect the worst to happen. They don’t want to get their hopes up so they’ll never be disappointed. And they rarely are. Since they’re looking for the worst, they’ll generally find it. If a negative thinker receives a compliment at work, he’ll brush it off, figuring it was a fluke and will never happen again. Since they expect the worst, they don’t use their resources to discover a solution. Their life becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy, they give up and become stuck where they are.

Conversely, the optimist will look on the bright side, and find it. They’re the ones that “make lemons into lemonade.” Since they look for a way to turn a disaster into an opportunity, they’ll generally create a way to do so. If a person with a positive attitude is praised for a project well done, he’ll accept the congratulations and appreciate it. Optimists expect life to improve, so they look for solutions and take action.

How Realism Impacts Both

There is a difference between pessimism and realism. Suppose you have just enough in your bank account to pay all of your bills. A pessimist may get depressed over this state of affairs, and decide that “I don’t have any extra money for fun, and the situation will never get any better,” which simply tells the subconscious not to find a way to improve the situation.

Someone who is too optimistic may choose to spend some of their income on a good dinner, believing that something will turn up to recoup the money before the bills are due. That’s when a realistic attitude is helpful. A realistic optimist will think “Wow, there’s enough money to pay the bills this month. And since there’s nothing constant in the Universe but change, my financial situation will get better,” instructing their creative mind to keep working on a solution.

Optimists Aren’t Born

Pessimism is actually stressful and hard on the body. Studies have shown that pessimists have more physical illnesses and die at a younger age than optimists. Many people think that if they’re an optimist or pessimist, it’s a permanent condition. Not so. Optimists are not born, they’re trained that way. (The same is true of pessimists.) As children, we might pattern ourselves after the way a parent, friend, or teacher acted towards life; or we might choose the opposite approach. Either way, we learn to either look at the shadow or at the sunny side of life.

Being optimistic doesn’t mean that a person is a Pollyanna, wears rose-colored glasses and never recognizes that something is difficult, hurtful, or sad. It just means that they don’t dwell on it. They choose to focus on the good in life, and look for a way for things to improve. In doing so, they’re instructing their creative mind to find a way to turn the obstacles into a benefit. The Chinese character for “challenge” is the same as the character for “opportunity.”

How to Become an Optimist

Becoming an optimist means changing the way you focus on the events in your life. Listen to what you tell yourself about things. Are they negative? Are they actually accurate? For instance, if a friend betrays you, do you think, “I can’t trust any of my friends, and I’ll never find a friend I can trust?” Simply because one friend betrayed you doesn’t mean that all of them are disloyal. Challenge your own negative beliefs and attitudes. They are not facts. They are simply how you have been trained to think about a situation. If you have been trained one way, you can train yourself to think about it differently.

Give yourself a pep talk, such as “Lois betrayed me. She pretended to be my friend for her own agenda. That’s not my issue, it’s hers. Looking back, I realized that something was amiss in the relationship. I have other friends who have been trustworthy. I’m learning more and more to pay attention to my feelings about who can be trusted. There are lots of nice people with integrity in the world, and I can meet them.” This changes the focus of your attention from “no solution” to “solutions are available.”

Just as when a person sees the glass half-empty or half-full, altering the focus can change your filters. When you change your filters, this transforms the way you perceive life. So, instead of seeing the glass as half-empty, you can begin to see the opportunities of the glass being half-full.

Affirmation:

I know that I perceive life through the filters of my own beliefs. Those beliefs aren’t facts, they’re simply based on conclusions I’ve drawn from past experiences, and from the way I’ve learned to process that information. I now realize that there are many other ways to view the events of my life, and I now choose to change my focus to a more positive one. I actively search for a positive way to look at the situations of my life, a way that supports my well being. As I do, I’m instructing my creative mind to discover ways to improve my life.

Stop Worrying And Be Happy

Stop Worrying And Be Happy

by Linda-Ann Stewart

Stress and Overwhelm

When I was a child, my mother called me a “worrywart.” I was concerned about everything, from the well being of my friends, my parents dying (a normal childhood fear) to whether we were going to have a nuclear war (not normal for someone aged   seven). There was very little I could change about these situations, but that didn’t stop me from trying to figure out what I might do. Worry gave me the illusion of having some control over these circumstances.

From childhood, we’re taught to worry about our lives, the people around us, the state of the world. Mom would say, “Of course I’m worried about you, I care about you.” We then patterned ourselves on that model of caring. As children, if we worried about our grades, or about doing something wrong, then the adults considered that we were more mature. Our society perceives people who worry to be more earnest, responsible, or concerned about conditions. If we don’t show our apprehension about a serious situation, people sometimes perceive us as being flighty, a dreamer, not connected with reality, or worst of all (to them) – “an optimist.”

Worry Is Wasteful

But worry is a useless waste of energy. Most of what we worry about can’t be impacted by our being anxious about it. So far, we haven’t had a nuclear war, so I wasted all those hours reading the Civil Defense pamphlets on how to “duck and cover” and how to make a fallout shelter. Taking realistic actions (if there are any) to prepare for a future event is one thing, obsessing over it after we’ve done what we can or over what we can’t change is another. And because the subconscious follows the conscious mind’s lead, it figures if we’re worrying, we must want more to be apprehensive about.

When we worry, we’re simply living in fear. And FEAR stands for “False Evidence Appearing Real.” Fear of a possibility that may, but generally doesn’t, happen. If there is an outcome that is ordained (such as our getting older or inflation), nothing we can do will change it and we might as well enjoy each moment of life.

Mentally chewing a possibility over and over, and not allowing ourselves to have fun because maybe something bad might happen, is a waste of time and energy. Worry is immobilizing. It actually keeps us from being productive, efficient, and pro-active in the present. Universal energy is diverted to a cycle of anxiety instead of into being more creative and finding solutions.

The Habit of Worry

Worry can become a habit, and gives us an illusion of control over circumstances beyond our influence. We can only change our responses and ourselves. Some chronic worriers, in quiet times of happiness, will actually spoil it with an anxious thought of “What should I be worrying about?” I almost superstitiously felt that if I worried, the feared outcome wouldn’t materialize. Finally, I realized that I could more effectively use positive affirmations to bring out the best.

End the Cycle of Worry

The good news is that this habit can be broken. Remember what The Serenity Prayer teaches. “God grant me the serenity accept the things I cannot change, the courage to change the things I can, and the wisdom to know the difference.” The challenge is to “know the difference.”

Start writing down your concerns. This brings them into a more rational frame of mind, and you can assess their reality. Challenge them with the idea, “How likely is it that this will happen?” If it is a possibility, what’s the worst that can happen, and what would you do? Can you change the situation? If not, every time you begin to chew on it, remind yourself that you will deal with it if it happens. Find an affirmation that helps reinforce something positive happening.

I still occasionally find myself worrying about things, generally when I’m really stressed. But for the most part, I’ve broken the habit. In doing so, I’ve released more positive energy into my life. As the song says, “Don’t Worry, Be Happy.”

Affirmation:

Most of what I worry about never happens, so I end the wasteful cycle of worry. I recognize what I can change and what I can’t, and release those conditions beyond my control to the Infinite. Universal Mind guides me into making the best decisions about what I can change. Only good comes to me, as Divine Right Action takes place in every area of my life. I allow myself to enjoy happiness.

As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html You can contact her at LAS@Linda-AnnStewart.com or 928-600-0452.

Practicing Goodwill to Yourself

Practicing Goodwill to Yourself

by Linda-Ann Stewart

Heart shaped Christmas wreath

This is the season for “Peace on Earth, goodwill to all.” But how is your goodwill towards yourself? In other words, how are you treating yourself? Are you doing things that nurture and nourish your inner being or are you putting yourself last on your list? The way you take care of yourself impacts your relations with everything in your world. When you don’t give your inner self importance, Life treats you much in the same way.

The Bible says to “Love thy neighbor as thyself.” This has been interpreted to mean that we’re to put others first. But read of the whole quote, “Love thy neighbor AS thyself,” not more than yourself. If you don’t love yourself, you can’t love your neighbor. Love of self and goodwill extends outward like the ripples in a pond. When you tend to yourself, you can tend to others because you have more love to spread.

There’s an old saying, “Charity begins at home.” This is because if you give all of yourself away, there’s nothing left for you, therefore there’s nothing left of you to give. If you don’t nurture yourself in a healthy way, your inner self will insist on it. For instance, if you work too hard, you might get sick to get some time off.

How can you nurture yourself? I’m not talking about eating a pound of fudge, but doing something that makes your inner being feel nourished. Getting enough sleep and eating healthy meals would be a good start. Other things to do could be to take a walk, get out into nature, meditate, do yoga, take a bubble bath, rent a video, or something else that makes you feel special. For you are special to the Universe. The Infinite wants you to show goodwill to yourself, so that your peace will spread to the world.

As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html You can contact her at LAS@Linda-AnnStewart.com or 928-600-0452.

Optimism: The Key Ingredient for Success

Optimism: The Key Ingredient for Success

by Linda-Ann Stewart

Your attitude determines your direction

When I first began my hypnotherapy practice, I was in a depressed emotional state. After I opened, some people said that hypnosis wasn’t in demand in our area. That belief lodged in my already disheartened mind. Although I advertised, spoke at clubs, networked, and gave seminars, my attitude was such that my efforts did very little. Not surprisingly, I had a hard time paying my bills. The Universe and my creative mind were just supporting my negative conclusion that there were few clients available.

One day, I decided to change my mindset about the number of people who wanted to use my services, and just see what happened. I began to market myself by giving talks about hypnosis, and promoting these talks with fliers and through press releases. This time, I held the attitude that I would reach the people who were interested. Almost immediately, my practice began to grow.

The Role Optimism Plays in Success

How many people do you know who begin a project, a hobby, or a new business with stars in their eyes? They have the ability, the desire to make it a success, but after the first couple of bumps or setbacks, they give up and quit. These folks lack one ingredient they need to be successful – optimism. This concept gives them the attitude that with a bit more work and perseverance, things will get better.

A person can have incredible gifts, but if they don’t do anything with them, because they don’t believe in themselves, they won’t achieve anything. That same person can have all the motivation and desire to get ahead, but if they lose heart and get discouraged when things don’t go their way, they will begin to give up and stop doing what’s necessary to create a success. In Learned Optimism, by Martin Seligman, it states that talent plus desire, but without optimism, will result in failure. Therefore, optimism and belief in oneself is absolutely paramount to succeeding in any venture.

Your Attitude Helps or Hinders You

When a person has a belief that things won’t work out, the Universe fulfills that concept. When an obstacle comes up, we need to seek out new avenues of expression rather than just giving up, or just going through the motions. It’s been said that, “God can’t steer a parked vehicle.” As long as we’re moving in a direction, we can be guided, if we believe we will be. If we figure, “What’s the use?” then the Universe has no opening to help us. We’ve blocked It out. We then sink into a swamp of despair of our own making.

If I hadn’t changed my attitude from being pessimistic to optimistic, my practice would never have thrived. I altered the way that I perceived the public and my marketing methods. In so doing, my more positive attitude unconsciously communicated with people. Telemarketers are instructed to smile as they call, because the person they talk with can hear it in their voice. Having an optimistic attitude, in addition to ability and motivation, is essential to success in any area of life. The Universe flows into the positive attitude to create new possibilities, making it a self-fulfilling prophecy.

Affirmation:

I have the talent, ability, desire and motivation to achieve my goals. Negative beliefs that I won’t be able to reach my goal can be self-fulfilling. I examine those concepts to identify what may be holding me back, and change them to more positive ideas. As I move in the direction of my desire, I remember that the Universe is guiding me. I open myself up for that guidance, recognizing it when it comes, and following it. I now have all the attributes I need to be a success.

As a focus mentor, hypnotherapist, and writer, Linda-Ann Stewart motivates women entrepreneurs and small business owners to focus and transform their business through deliberate actions that break through distraction and overwhelm to greater success, wellbeing and prosperity.To boost productivity and reduce overwhelm, register for her FREE guide, Design Your Best Day, at https://www.Linda-AnnStewart.com/guide.html You can contact her at LAS@Linda-AnnStewart.com or 928-600-0452.

Tip the Scales Towards the Positive

Tip the Scales Towards the Positive

When there’s a tragedy, you may resist feeling good because you think it’s inappropriate. But this is the most important time for you to focus on the good in your life. Doing so builds resiliency to handle difficult times. Learn a powerful technique that allows you to create more strength and empowerment for good times and bad. Watch Tip the Scales Towards the Positive.

Transcript:

Sometimes, when bad things have happened, such as a tragedy in the world or in your personal life, you might feel guilty for feeling upbeat. You might think it’s selfish, inappropriate or that you don’t deserve to.

This is common and natural, but doesn’t help you or anyone else. It just perpetuates the negativity, undermining your strength and reducing your ability to handle the situation. This is really the most important time for you to focus on what is good in your life.

When you pay attention to the good things in your life, you tip the scales toward feeling better. This results in more happiness and well being for you, more kindness and compassion towards others. You’ll have more resources to draw from to deal with the tragedy and when other upsetting experiences do occur.

I’m Linda-Ann Stewart and I empower people to focus and align their heart with their vision so they can achieve their goals. I’d like to share with you how you can give yourself a well of resilience to draw from in good times and bad. This is a technique I use in my life and it’s served me well.

Neuroscience tells us that “neurons that fire together, wire together.” That means that the more you focus on the positive, the more neurons you build in the areas of encouragement, empowerment, and inspiration.

To stimulate your neurons to create more positive emotions, when you find  something pleasant in your life, let it fill you up. Instead of just thinking of it  for a few seconds, which, don’t get me wrong, is good, spend 20-30 seconds focusing on it.

Feel it, savor it. Let it pour through you like a warm glow, or golden liquid. I will often stop with the intention to take time to relish a scene or experience  to allow the joy and serenity of it to imprint on my memory.

The longer you dwell on the pleasant  experience and allow it to stimulate gratifying emotions, the stronger and more powerful the your positive neurons become.

I suggest practicing this several times a day. The more often you do this, the more you build a net of positive neurons that can support and nourish you in tough times.

Thank you for watching. If you enjoyed this video, please like my YouTube channel and click the bell to be notified of future videos about mindset, motivation and empowerment. Until next time, stay focused.

Read the accompanying article, Find the Good in Your Life.