When something occurs that concerns us, many times we let worry about what could happen drain us of any creativity or joy. We borrow trouble and it generally never happens. Instead of letting your fears control you, follow along on this meditation to help you take charge of your thoughts and imagine something better.
The Number 1 Bad Habit You Need to Stop If You Want to Lose Weight
If you want to lose weight, stop the negative self-talk. Your thoughts matter when it comes to your weight. Learn about a study that shows just how powerful your thoughts are in this matter.
Simple ‘4-7-8’ breathing trick can induce sleep in 60 seconds
Dr Andrew Weil says it works because it allows the lungs to become fully charged with air, allowing more oxygen into the body. This extra oxygen can have a relaxing effect on the parasympathetic nervous system, which promotes a state of calmness.
In a Digital Chapter, Paper Notebooks Are as Relevant as Ever
Moleskin notebooks have grown in popularity along with technology. And they’re not alone. Paper planners are also making a comeback. A study has even found that students who write their notes retain much more than those who type them.
Dr. Terry Paulson shares his Optimism Advantage advice on how to manage your own motivation and confidence in tough economic times. Learn practical strategies to make a daily difference in your positive attitude.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
5 affirmations that have the power to transform your life
The statements you tell yourself affect your feelings, beliefs and behaviors. Here are 5 positive statements, with a brief commentary, that can help you create a happier, healthier life. They are declarations of intention to keep you focused on what’s important.
Nine steps to work-place happiness
The biggest obstacle to happiness at work is your belief that you’re the prisoner of circumstance.
And your beliefs create your experience. Here are 9 steps that can help you keep your perspective, take control of your thoughts and have a happier, more harmonious life.
For Happiness, Keep a Gratitude Journal
Keeping a gratitude journal has been studied extensively at UC Davis Emmons Lab. They’ve found that those who keep them experience a host of benefits, from better health and well being to feeling more connected to others. This is one person’s journey with keeping one, and transitioning from a pessimist to a more optimistic person.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart
Question: Is there a secret to recovering one’s self-esteem?
Answer: It isn’t easy to reclaim yourself and your self-worth. It’s probably one of the hardest things a person can do, and yet, it’s at the foundation of everything we experience. Which may be why it can be so hard.
Imagine that your being was fragmented in childhood because of your family. You’re going to have to find those pieces, or make new ones, to put yourself back together again. However, each tiny step you take will take you in the right direction.
Sometimes, there will be two steps forward and one back. That’s normal. Not only are you simply firming up your progress by taking the step back, but the subconscious may feel uncomfortable with your progress.
Your subconscious doesn’t like change, and it’s trying to keep you safe in the environment that you no longer live in. It just needs to get the message that it’s safe now for you to have your own beliefs, a sense of self-worth, self-trust and confidence.
When you dedicate yourself to be there for yourself, the subconscious mind and the Universe will support you. It’s not that there won’t be any bumps along the way – that’s how we get stronger. But if you are committed to your well-being, and do all you can for it, then you will begin to feel better.
This won’t happen overnight. It will take some time, and it takes consistency. An affirmation that you can use is: “I accept my True Worth.”
Copyright 2006, 2015 Linda Ann Stewart
All Rights Reserved
by Linda-Ann Stewart
Many years ago, I decided to overcome my fear of acting. Instead of diving in, I attended an audition for a play at the local community theater to familiarize myself with the process. This lowered my anxiety threshold, and I made plans to ease into auditioning for a play a few months later.
The Universe had other ideas. The director insisted I audition for that play and gave me a supporting role in it. Within weeks of committing myself to overcoming my fear of acting in front of an audience, I was officially a thespian.
The only thing that had prevented me from doing this before was my fear. I was afraid I’d forget my lines or my blocking, and panic if something unexpected happened. None of those fears were based on reality. They were simply excuses to keep me from fulfilling a goal.
As a survival instinct, fear’s mission is to give you the energy to fight or flee from a physical danger. But the mind doesn’t distinguish between a real or imagined, physical or emotional threat. It reacts to the image in your mind. Whether the image comes from your eyes or your imagination doesn’t matter. Your mind acts on it in the same way. Only when the hazard is real is the instinct a positive response.
Most of what you fear is a lie. Unless it’s acting as a survival instinct against physical injury, fear is an emotion that’s based on your beliefs. The emotion is an attempt by older thought patterns to keep you safe. Those thoughts were developed in an environment that no longer exists. If you didn’t have those beliefs, you wouldn’t feel fear.
Those patterns were designed specifically to convince you that you couldn’t survive if the worst happened. Fear of rejection, disapproval, failure, disappointment, responsibility, and success are just a few reasons why this emotion keeps you stuck. What you tell yourself about a situation becomes an autosuggestion that reinforces the feeling. This makes you think it has more validity than it actually does and strengthens its grip on you.
As a child, you were taught to cross the street by looking both ways to make sure there weren’t any cars coming. That’s normal caution. You check to see if there’s danger coming, and if there isn’t, you move ahead. But you could continue to look both ways forever and never commit to crossing the road. In this case, you’d be stuck in paralyzing fear.
The autosuggestion that created your belief is mutable. You created it and you can change it. Changing the belief changes the emotion. For instance, you can realize that you now have experience, knowledge and resources you didn’t have when the old thought patterns were created.
If you ask for a raise and get turned down, you’ll be disappointed. But you won’t be devastated as you might have been as a child when something similar happened. Speaking up for yourself and getting belittled is upsetting, but it doesn’t have to destroy you anymore. You can even find help from people and places if need be.
When you take a deep breath and forge ahead, the Universe comes in to support and guide you. Opportunities, contacts, resources, knowledge and anything else you need ambles into your path. Your energy is directed towards your goal, instead of toward playing it safe and staying put.
When fear comes up in your life, assess it to see if it’s realistic or valid. If not, remind yourself that it’s a lie, trying to fool you to believing there’s danger where none exists. Once you’ve established that it’s safe to move forward, fear is no longer helpful. Commit yourself to your vision and dedicate yourself to moving forward. Fear begins to dissipate when you prove to yourself that its message is false.
After that first play, I acted in three more. I remembered my lines, blocking, choreography and easily handled unexpected situations that arose onstage. It was a magnificent time in my life. I enjoyed it, grew from it, and became a different person because of it. When you stop letting fear rule your actions, your life will change. Not only will it be richer and freer, but also you’ll be more satisfied and fulfilled.
Affirmation
Fear is a false idea that simply comes from my old beliefs. Beliefs that my mind has created, my mind can also change. I remind myself that fears are simply to caution me. The Universe protects and guides me in the right direction. Whatever I need to fulfill my goal appears, as I need it. As I commit myself to moving forward, the next step unfolds for a richer and fuller life.
Copyright 2012, 2015 Linda Ann Stewart
All Rights Reserved
Question: What affirmations could I use to improve my self-image?
Answer: You’d have to determine what you feel is lacking in your self-worth. Suggestions such as: “I am worthy of all the good there is,” “I deserve the best,” “I feel confident and self-assured,” “I accept my true worth” would be a good place to start. Some of my clients say that they “don’t feel like I’m enough.” I give them suggestions that “You are enough, good enough, worthy enough.”
Since the self-esteem issue is individual, you’d know best what kind of ideas you need to emphasize. A suggestion, by Emile Coue, a pioneer in mental programming, is a good, general one. “Every day, in every way, I’m really getting better and better.”
Copyright 2006, 2014 Linda Ann Stewart
All Rights Reserved
Question: Why hasn’t my situation changed after my repeating affirmations for five weeks?
Answer: From my own experience, when you’re making significant changes, it may take the subconscious some time to do so. At one point in my life, I remember it took about four months of daily affirmations before I saw results, but the results were staggering. You have to continue affirmations even after you start to lose faith, because the follow through also impresses the subconscious.
Also, you need to let the subconscious mind do its work. If your conscious mind keeps asking “when, how?” it draws energy from the subconscious. I know it’s hard not to wonder (believe me, I know), but that’s one of the most important parts of it, and I think, the hardest.
Realize that even though you aren’t seeing results, the affirmations are working. They’re just making changes in the hidden recesses of your mind, and waiting until you let go of the “when, how?” When you’re able to release the concern about it, knowing that they’re working and will show results, then the subconscious can put all its energy into making the changes.
Any doubt or fear will give the subconscious mixed messages. They tell the subconscious you don’t really want your affirmation, because your focus is on the doubt or fear. Remember, the subconscious manifests what you’re focusing on – whether it’s positive or negative – it doesn’t care. It can only go where you direct it.
Copyright 2006, 2014 Linda Ann Stewart
All Rights Reserved
by Linda-Ann Stewart
Carol’s budding romance fell apart when her boyfriend moved away. Soon after, he found someone else and 
married her. When Carol found out, she fell back into an old habit pattern of criticizing herself because things didn’t work out as she’d expected. But as soon as she realized she was beating herself up, she reminded herself that it was her choice how she felt about the situation.
She could either continue to make herself feel bad, by berating herself for not being important enough for him to stay. Or she could remind herself of some of the reasons why the relationship had problems, such as their different values and interests. By focusing on the relationship issues, she felt better about the breakup. She chose to focus on the real reason the relationship failed, and felt better about the situation.
You have the power to choose what to think about. And what you focus on determines how you feel. If you think about all your failures, then you’re going to feel dejected and disheartened. When you put yourself down, you feel incompetent. This will tell your subconscious to keep presenting you with situations that will make you feel this way.
Your feelings determine what actions you take. Negative and fear based feelings reduce your inner resources. And because you don’t have that extra energy, you pull back and don’t do what’s necessary to resolve the situation.
For instance, you could focus on the fact that you don’t have enough clients. Seeing only the lack will make you sink into fear and you’ll try to find a way to reduce your expenses. Or you could focus on attracting more clients by promoting your business. You then go out and contact more people, tell them about your business, and fulfill your expectation of success. Your focus creates your feelings which determines your actions.
You get more of whatever you focus on. Focus channels the Law of Attraction. If you’re thinking about lack of money, not achieving your goals, or how you’re ineffective, then you’ll get more of that to deal with. But if you focus on drawing abundance into your life, accomplishing your goals, and how you’re capable of success, then that instructs your subconscious to find more opportunities for you to experience these things. The Law of Attraction then draws these conditions to you.
Unless it’s to teach you a lesson, to cause you to deal with the reality of a situation, or to propel you into constructive action, there’s really no reason to dwell on negative thoughts. Once you’ve learned the lesson from a negative situation and become aware of what you need to do, set aside the disempowering thought. It’s no longer serving a purpose.
Your thoughts are like a wild horse. By corralling them and reining them in, you train them to follow your instructions and go where you want them to go. It takes persistent and gentle discipline to accomplish this. When you think something disempowering and negative, gently bring your attention back to something more empowering and constructive. Initially, the negative thought might surface several times a minute, because the old pattern is strong. But each time this happens, refocus your attention on what you choose and eventually these new desires will be the norm.
Whenever you notice yourself feeling sad, bad or upset, ask yourself what you’re thinking. Pay attention to what you’re saying to yourself. Then remind yourself that you have the choice of what to think. There are always different aspects of a situation you can address. Pick something that is empowering and causes you to move forward.
When you train your mind to focus on what you want, you’ll not only feel better, but you’ll be more successful. The Law of Attraction will be working for your best interests. You have the choice of what to think and focus on. Whether you exercise that power in a constructive or destructive way is up to you.
Affirmation:
What I focus on determines how I feel and whether I move forward or not. I have the power and choice about what I focus on in any situation. I choose to put my attention on constructive and empowering ideas. Gently and with persistence, I rein in my mind and direct my focus back onto what I want.
Copyright 2013 Linda Ann Stewart
All Rights Reserved
In this video, bestselling author and speaker Brian Tracy describes how to develop a positive attitude. A positive personality will have more effect on your success and happiness than anything else. Although the video text asserts it will help you double your sales, his instructions apply to success in every aspect of life. He describes the ways to build yourself up and fill yourself with constructive ideas. Following these steps will attract success and create happiness in your life.
~ Linda-Ann Stewart