Thinking Better: The Power of Toxic-Free Thoughts

By: Rasheedah Billups

The mind is a powerful thing. It can do anything, and it does everything; it feels, perceives, thinks, wills, reasons, and creates. At a young age we hear things like ‘if you can see it, you can achieve it’, this is #true. It all starts in the mind. On the other hand, ‘sticks and stones may break my bones but words will never hurt me’ is not so true. It’s pretty layered. Words can hurt, especially the ones we say to ourselves, whether out loud or internally; our self-talk matters. Self-talk is our internal monologue, it’s the voice inside that’s constantly on play, broadcasting thought after thought. Whatever we constantly broadcast becomes our truth.

The power of the mind

The things that are happening in our mind dictates what and how we experience everything. What we think when we wake up in the morning determines the trajectory of our day. At some point, we’ve all come face to face with moments when it was apparent that “you” are the only thing standing between you and what you came to do.

If you’ve ever played sports, participated in a play, or did anything that required you to put mind over matter, someone more than likely coached you to envision yourself winning, speaking on stage, or walking through the door with your head held high. That person understood that your success was directly tied to what you thought about yourself and the situation you were approaching.

The way you mentally place yourself in the world, is exactly how you will show up. When our self-talk is negative and unproductive, we find ourselves feeling bad, getting stuck and falling short. That’s because we’ve already mentally defeated ourselves. If you’ve never given much effort to checking the types of thoughts that show up for you, it might feel like a different outlook or outcome isn’t possible. But it is.

How do I get rid of toxic thinking?

Just like toxic products and toxic people, toxic thoughts need to go too! By implementing the right practices, we can begin to have better thoughts, improve the way we feel, show up for ourselves the way we deserve, and create any experience we desire.

Start to bring awareness to your thoughts. Pay attention to how you talk to yourself throughout your day and in different situations. Pay close attention to the first thing you choose to focus on in the morning - your internal monologue when you’re faced with a new challenging task, and how you critique yourself when you look in the mirror. Are you putting yourself down with harsh and malicious dialogue or are you carefully choosing your thoughts and making positive assertions? In some areas of your life, you’re probably getting in the way of possibilities, we all do.

Meditation is also useful in building awareness and changing your thought patterns. You can create a meditation practice that works for you by starting with as little as five minutes a day. Sitting in a quiet space and incorporating aromatherapy will help to bring awareness to your thoughts. Try the Rosemary + Spearmint Essential Oil Blend by BLK + GRN. Rosemary is useful for the mind, it is a mental stimulant, it helps reduce stress, and aids in clarity and insight.

Trade in the bad self-talk for something better. Incorporate positive affirmations into your daily routine. An affirmation is a positive declaration, used to create desired thought habits. Identify the affirmations you need. You can create your own affirmations or find tons in an online search or in books like “You Can Heal Your Life” by Lousie Hay. Every morning look in the mirror and say the affirmations you’ve selected out loud. Morning is a great time to incorporate your affirmations because the momentum you create when you first wake will impact how the rest of your day unfolds.

“If you change the way you look at things, the things you look at change.” –Wayne Dyer

Our thoughts matter, a lot. We’re accustomed to using our mind a certain way, but old habits that don’t serve us deserve the boot! When we realize that we have the power to create whatever we desire by adjusting our thoughts, the possibilities are endless. Thinking better takes time and practice. Be patient with yourself. Be kind to yourself.

What are some of your favorite affirmations? Share them in the comments below so we can all be inspired!