Week #2: “Banish Anxious Thoughts”
Hi Friends,
Welcome Back!
Last week, we worked on “Refreshing our Fun-Factor!” The goal was to stress less and take a lighter view of life. I’m hoping that your intentional focus on ‘fun’ made a difference and that you felt more ‘at ease’ and had a heightened sensation of enjoying each day, no matter what its challenges were!
Now to Challenge #2.
Today we’re taking the challenge a step further because as we grow up, most of us become conditioned to spending a crazy amount of time worrying or feeling anxious about ‘things’. There are any number of these ‘things’ that we stress over, totally individual to each one of us (I would hate to admit what some of mine are, smiling) and our strategic intention to ‘have fun with life today’ can go pear shaped by breakfast! Did you experience any of that last week? Some of this anxiousness is realistic and useful of course when appropriate, but most of it is wasted nervous energy based on habits of negative thinking that we’ve programmed over time- Hypothetical, unrealistic ‘what ifs’ and they can gobble our good mood.
This is your week to identify your involuntary anxious-thinking topics, and make peace with them. You’ll feel their weight drop right off your shoulders!
For ‘Banish Anxious Thoughts’ week, try the following:
1. What are they?
• Scan each day for anxious thoughts and moments – What exactly creates stress in your day?
• Don’t filter what you notice by thinking its embarrassing or silly- we all do this, and it all counts- big, small or indifferent worry.
• Takes notes when you can, so you have a list
2. Are they realistic?
• Look through your list each day and put the topics into 2 categories
- a. Realistic Anxious Thoughts (“I’m so stressed. I have a big job interview today”)
- b. Conditioned Anxious Thought (“They won’t pick me for this job- why would I be any better than any of the other applicants?”)
3. What to do with them?
A. REALISTIC ANXIOUS THOUGHTS (“I’m so stressed! I have a big job interview today”)
TAKE ACTION
1. Prepare in every practical way for the very thing you’re concerned about. Get busy DOING things that will increase your chances of success. Using the above example you could:
- Take time to be clear about your strengths, skills, capabilities and why you’d be an asset
- Check the traffic or transport schedule so you know you’ll arrive in plenty of time
- Do research on the company you’re applying with so you walk into the interview informed
2. Shift your thinking from worry, toward positivity, and perhaps toward excitement if appropriate.
- Using the above example, you could change your thinking to: “I can’t wait to get to the job interview today! I really feel that I’m the right person for the job and I’m looking forward to bringing my experience to the role. I can see myself working there”
- Shift your stress to excitement. Repeat this over and over to yourself in order to override the negativity of your nerves
B. CONDITIONED ANXIOUS THOUGHTS (“They won’t pick me for this job- why would I be any better than any of the other applicants?”) Over the years, this person has programmed themselves to feel unworthy and undeserving even though it’s not at all true.
SHIFT YOUR THINKING
1. Mindfully move your thinking from negativity to positivity: Using the above example, you could change your thinking to: (“I’m bright, capable and extremely experienced. With my background I’m a great candidate for this role. If by chance I’m not their final choice its not the end of the world. I‘ll apply again somewhere else and will end up with the perfect next step in my career”)
2. Repeat your new thinking like a broken record: Remember that we need to undo long term conditioning and the repetition builds new neural pathways in the brain. It takes time and perseverance but it will work! Practice this all week ENJOY THE EXPERIENCE!
Once again, I’m thrilled you’re joining me for the 7-Week Challenge, to LOVE Work, LOVE Life. We have 5 weeks to go!
I’d love to know what you’re experiencing, so send a note to me at muffy@muffychurches.com
Power on! See you next week for Challenge #3.
Muffy
