Positive Thought: The Stages of Power

There has always been an interest in the power of the mind and, specifically, the effect of its polarity. My goal in writing this article is to offer an explanation without any attachment to spirituality or religion as my understanding doesn't require that you subscribe to any particular system of beliefs. nnI think it's important to clarify that I don't believe positive thinking removes all obligation of taking action simply because the action step (no matter how seemingly insignificant the action may seem) is the step that solidifies the thought. In other words, your thoughts can also be called intentions and our actions/decisions/choices can be called beliefs in action. nnLets outline the steps involved in solving any problem or coming up with a desired event. Unconscious steps will be lettered and conscious steps numbered.nn

"A pessimist sees the difficulty in every opportunity; an optimist sees the opportunity in every difficulty."nnWinston Churchill

nna. "See" Possible Outcomes - It is important to note that this step is often overlooked. This is where a negative mind will filter out goals that current beliefs deem impossible and the goal is ruled out before getting to step 1. Therefore, the ultimate outcome is never even attempted.nn1. Choose Outcome - According to the results in step a, the goal is selected. nnb. Creative Inspiration - It is possible, before the rational/logical mind takes the reins, to allow yourself the luxury of inspired action. Instead of trying to figure out how according to what the logical mind is capable of focusing on you simply act on any impulses or inspiration that pops into your head. The negative mind will either be too focused on "the problem" to notice this step or just outright ignore it.nn2. Plan - Implementing or ignoring anything from step b, the small details that require completion first and overall process are defined.nnc. Visualize - Yes we do. Even if it only takes a fraction of a second. We "see" it or we don't. We believe it or we don't. This is where the negative mind, more often than not, has already chosen failure. That's right, before we even take the action step our mind has sabotaged our plans.nn3. Action - Despite the feelings that arose in step c, the majority of the time we proceed to the action step. It sounds crazy but we do it all the time. We complete the process whether we believe it will work or not.nnd. Confirmation - This is where we confirm our beliefs, limitations, and attitude. The negative mind says, "See I told you we were screwed!" and the positive minds says, "I knew it would work! It was even easier than I expected!"nn4. Review - We followed the plan, did it work?nn

"The positive thinker sees the invisible, feels the intangible, and achieves the impossible."nnUnknown

nnOk so what's the catch? Will you always succeed if you're positive and always fail if you're negative? No. It depends entirely on the limitations and beliefs specific to each scenario. The difference is the positive mind has more freedom, more opportunities and most importantly - more fun. The negative mind keeps building walls of limitations and failure until it can't even see the way out. nnThe good news is that we have a choice. The bad news is that we have habits. In an effort to spare us from having to consciously control every aspect of our lives our unconscious mind provides us with an autopilot. The autopilot gets you to and from work, brushes your teeth in the same order, gets you dressed, and unfortunately - keeps you positive or negative. nnIf you desire a change in mental polarity you must realize that you must make a conscious effort to switch habits. Be gentle with your mind, it was only doing what it was made to do. Your awareness of your thoughts will grow with your efforts to focus on them and change them and, eventually, your autopilot will be positive.