What You Think Determines Your Life

“You are today where your thoughts have brought you. You will be tomorrow where your thoughts take you.” James Allen

“Nothing limits achievement like small thinking; nothing expands possibilities like unleashed thinking.” William Arthur Ward

If there is anything that people hate to hear is that they are a product of their thoughts. In a world that likes to blame everyone else for their situation the last thing we want to accept is that where I am and who I am today is a culmination of my thoughts of my many yesterdays. We have built a western culture on “making someone pay” for what is happening to me today. The whole legal system seems to be making billions of dollars perpetuating this “victim” mentality. It is tying up the legal system with frivolous lawsuits. It would be like suing your parents because they used cloth diapers rather than pampers for the way you are today.

A study was done by the University of Tennessee over a 12 year time period. One group of people listened to just 5 minutes of negative news broadcasts – earthquakes kill thousands, bus blown up and 20 children killed, shooting in a church, shooting in a mall. Then the other group listened to more positive and uplifting news – organization helps struggling family with medical attention, motorist stops to help elderly man who had slipped on ice, church provides sandwiches, cookies and juice every school day for those children who come without a lunch.

There were four discernible effects on the listeners who were daily exposed to five minutes of bad news:

1. they were more depressed than before
2. they believed the world was a negative place
3. they were less like to help others
4. they began to believe that what they heard would soon happen to them.

Simply by receiving and reflecting on the information from the radio program, their perceptions of the world and their outlook on life were adversely affected. Their concept of reality was shaped by their thoughts.

You listen to the top motivational speakers – Myron Golden, Jerry Clark, Jeffrey Coombs, Ellie Drake, Dani Johnson, and all the others. Every one of them proclaims the importance of paying attention to what you are listening to every day. Every one of them tell you to stop listening to the TV news, the radio news. Stop reading the first few pages of the news papers. Instead take that time to listen to or read something worthwhile and uplifting.

The Bible says in the book of Proverbs, “as a man thinks in his heart, so is he.” This whole idea of our thoughts shaping our lives is not some new breakthrough in behavioural science. It has been around since the dawn of time. We just don’t like to accept it. It is much easier to take the easy road of the negative thinking. Unfortunately that easy road leads to the garbage dump of life. To be someone, to do something, to value others, to respect others all takes mental work. But we have become too lazy. We want life to give to us. But it does not give. We must build. We must work. We must become.

So, are you having a successful life? Do you wake up each day and say, “life is worth the living?” If you don’t, take the time to examine what you are thinking about. Take the time to see what thoughts are being received by your ears. If they are continually negative change what you are listening to. Change what you are reading. Change what you are thinking about. What we think influences what we do. What we think affects the feelings we feel.

Nolan Padgett is into this whole thing of getting out of bed seeing that it is going to be a great day with funforturenow and floridagatortravel. He is having a successful life as he changes his thinking to success thoughts.