The Power of Beliefs

The way that we think,the ideas that we nurture,the patterns of thought that we possess all impact directly on the results that we achieve in our lives.We are told that each one of us has about 10000 different thoughts a day,the question to ask is what control do we exercise over our thinking processes?

I believe that most people exercise very little control over their thought processes.I base this on the fact that most people continue to generate the same results in their lives,eg low quality relationships,lack of fulfillment in their work situations,inadequate control over their finances,and are not really in a position to significantly change these results.

In the same way that if you drop an apple it will fall to the ground (Newtons law of gravity),effect follows cause.In the case of thinking,wrong thinking produces wrong beliefs,which in turn produces poor attitudes which in turn produces poor performance.In the same way that you cannot plant an orange and expect to grow a lemon tree,you cannot produce good performance if your thinking is off-track.

The first step in the process is therefore to identify results that are unsatisfactory in our lives.At the same time we need to get rid of the idea that we are victims,that other peoples actions or circumstance or luck have placed us in the position we currently find ourselves.The truth is that choices that we have made (or not made) have largely resulted in our current circumstances.

Consider the following results in your life and rate yourself accordingly on a scale of 1 (very poor) to 5 (very good) nnpersonal growth over the last 2 years nmarriage relationship nwork situation npersonal finances nfamily relationships nspiritual growth over the last 2 years

Wherever the results are unsatisfactory,we need to actively probe that area and examine our impact to determine what behaviours have caused these results.We then need to analyse those behaviours and determine why we behaved in that fashion and take steps to remedy the situation.For example,we might have tight budgetary constraints yet continue to fail to implement disciplined spending.The underlying reason could be a desire to feel that we are above having to be disciplined in our spending,or an undisciplined attitude to many areas in our lives.

What I am proposing is not a quick fix,but rather a long term approach of in a sense auditing the way we conduct our lives,analysing the way we make decisions,our behaviours in different situations and the things we say,to get a bearing on the beliefs that we hold,many of which are no longer appropriate.By accepting responsibility for our lives and the fact that our actions result in our lives moving in the directions that they do,we can start monitoring and changing inappropriate beliefs that would otherwise remain undetected and prevent us from becoming the people that we were meant to be. nnn