"At birth, a baby's brain contains 100 billion neurons, roughly as many nerve cells as there are stars in the Milky Way," according to an article Time magazine.
My first reaction? "Wow, we get all that power and hardware with no owner's manual or instructions booklet."
Just imagine what we could do if we understood a tenth of what our brains are capable of.
Now, I certainly don't presume to offer an owner's manual, but I can offer a few suggestions about what and what not to put into our brains.
The power of the words we use and how they affect what we think has been grossly underestimated.
You've probably heard someone say, usually while losing an argument, "Well, that's just semantics." I've learned that, when it comes to managing our brains, it is all semantics.
This is because the brain is simply a computer that takes in what we give it, whether it is in our interest or not.
For example, there are words I call garbage words.
A garbage word is a word that, if you allow your brain to use it on a regular basis, will lead to garbage thinking. Garbage thinking leads to garbage feelings and garbage actions, all of which can keep us from living the kind of lives we want to have.
"I have to."
There are very few things in life we have to do. There are very many things in life we choose to do.
Constantly saying "I have to" diminishes our power of choice. Replacing "I have to" with "I choose to" or "I get to" allows us to choose and bypasses the brain's natural resistance to being forced.
"Try."
This is one of the most powerful garbage words in common usage. For example, try to pick up the newspaper you are now reading. You either pick it up or you don't. Those are the only two outcomes.
In the words of Yoda in the "Star Wars" trilogy: "Do or do not. There is no 'try."'
"Hard."
This garbage word convinces our brains not to do something. It's an excuse for fear and/or laziness. Saying something is hard does not make it any easier to accomplish. Remember, though, that some things are difficult. But difficult things are still doable.
"I can't." This one usually means "I won't" or "I choose not to." A good replacement is "If I could, what would I do?"
"Losing weight."
I love this one. Consider how many times you or someone you know has said he or she wants to lose weight. Now consider what the brain hears.
What have we conditioned our brains to do when we "lose" something? We find it and get it back. Instead of "losing weight," we really want to "get rid of" weight.
"Yes, but ..."
Our brains automatically disregard everything that comes before the word "but." That's because when you hear the word "but," you think, "Ah, ha. Here comes the truth."
Instead of saying "but," use the word "and" (as in, "You did a good job with this, and you could also do that").
Is what I'm suggesting just a form of positive thinking?
Not really.
While positive thinking can be good, it's not enough all by itself. If you are walking in the rain during a thunderstorm saying, "It's not raining, it's not raining," you still are going to get wet.
What this is about is using words to operate your brain properly.
Here's a suggestion: Try replacing - oops! - I mean, replace garbage words with these replacement words, at the rate of one a week.
Eventually, you will eliminate the garbage words from your vocabulary, and get better results.
Visit secretsofgreatrelationships.com for tips and tools for creating and growing a great relationship. You can also subscribe to our f*r*e*e 10 day e-program on how to enrich your relationship today, from relationship coach and expert Jeff Herring.
Willow Springs limo O'Hare .. Lockport Chicago limo O’HareEver had a problem with doubts? Ever felt that nagging... Read More
If we are the products of our attitudes then it... Read More
Getting motivated is sometimes easy enough to do, at least... Read More
Have you ever felt the whole world was against you?... Read More
One thing in life is certain---change. Things never stay the... Read More
(The following is an actual email conversation between Newton Hightower,... Read More
Emotions are controlled by a combination of reason and action.... Read More
An old Joni Mitchell song reminds us, "don't it always... Read More
Say aloud:I AM. I AM Consciousness. I AM the creator... Read More
Every day that I eat EnergyRich? Food, I get almost... Read More
How would your life shift if you moved into what... Read More
IntroductionWe can find all type of people in this world... Read More
One of my class fellows was really tensed, when asked... Read More
Look for the positives!Seek them out - those little scary... Read More
I don't know about you, but for me, the technological... Read More
"Nothing can stop the man with the right mental attitude... Read More
As a being of thought, your dominant mental attitude will... Read More
There is a wonderful story about the famous escape artist,... Read More
P.M.A - so what is it? Some people will automatically... Read More
The mind absolutely amazes me. It will never be understood,... Read More
I just heard the story of a man who hired... Read More
Most of what we've been taught about how to be... Read More
You've probably heard this idea at one time or another.... Read More
Life shouldn't be so complicated. Have you ever wondered why... Read More
Satisfaction 100% guaranteed or your money back! That was the... Read More
group transportation logistics management Highland ..Did you know that the 911 equivalent in the UK... Read More
One thing that is important to realize about thought: one... Read More
I get emails and questions from people all the time... Read More
Have you heard of the FABS? The FABS are quadruplets;... Read More
A joke is a way of getting people to laugh.... Read More
Many people who suffer from low self-esteem would give anything... Read More
Every day something changes at work: your products, your customers,... Read More
I've had several coaching clients come to me who, while... Read More
Speaking comes to most people as naturally as breathing. On... Read More
What is a paradigm? In my own words, a paradigm... Read More
A Model of the dysfunctional, unconscious human psyche. A way... Read More
Inevitably in life we will face disappointment from time to... Read More
Positive self-esteem is very important if not crucial to our... Read More
Most of us start the day like we're trying to... Read More
Early in my career a position became available which I... Read More
Being the next Carmen Electra or Paris Hilton might or... Read More
Emotions have the tendency to take over our actions and... Read More
With Thanksgiving approaching, I thought it would be especially appropriate... Read More
I'm sure most of you remember the children's book about... Read More
Distortions are False Beliefs Programmed every Day by Self and... Read More
I went online -- and what do I see? A... Read More
Our attitude makes seems to control just about everything about... Read More
Peak Performance. It means being at the top of your... Read More
I am often astounded at what and why people believe... Read More
If you think you are a loser, you train or... Read More
Positive Attitude Tips |