How to Change Yourself
There are three basic ways to change yourself for the better:
1. Awareness or understanding. This is the first step
in change, but sometimes, awareness can bring changes all by
itself. For example, if you feel stressed, you can do a mindfulness
exercise, and once you see clearly what's going on just below
the surface in your mind, it resolves itself in seconds, and
your anxiety is gone. I'll explain this simple technique in a
future issue.
You drop something that is burning your hand, right? No need
to analyze the consequences of holding on. If you could "see"
or "feel" the consequences of bad habits or thinking
patterns just as clearly, you could drop those almost as quickly.
That's why I'll cover self awareness and "deep understanding"
in future issues.
2. Creating habits. Want to be more creative? Create
habits of mind that will make you automatically more creative
for the rest of your life. Want to lose weight, be more considerate,
more productive, more at peace, or more intelligent? Good habits
can eventually make all these things virtually effortless - if
you do the work up front to develop them.
3. Using Special Tools. Neurolinguistic programming,
brain wave entrainment, deep breathing, and more. This is the
fun stuff, because you can often see quick results, with little
effort.
Try this one for example: Try doing math in your head in two
ways. First, while slouching, looking at the floor, and letting
your mouth hang open. Then while sitting up straight, breathing
deeply through your nose, and keeping your mouth closed. You'll
find it much easier the second way. There are many such simple
techniques to change your mental functioning, and even your emotional
state.
Would you like instant relaxation? How about popping in a
CD, putting on the headphones, and easily entering a deep meditative
state? I use one of these daily, and they really work. I'll be
telling you all about my favorite techniques and technologies
in upcoming issues.
Goals or Direction?
Now that you know what the newsletter is about, I have a question
for you. What do you want to accomplish? If you only have a general
sense of wanting to "be a better person," that's okay.
As you learn more about what's possible, though, it will help
if you clarify your goals.
But here's a little secret: Making specific goals too soon
can backfire. A personal example: When I used to write down specific
financial goals I accomplished them, but I made myself miserable
in the process. I found that I'm happier when I take a clear
"direction," and then let any more detailed goals formulate
themselves in time.
Setting goals and writing them down is a powerful way to make
progress, but it's up to you to decide when specific goals are
appropriate.
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