PRESENT TENSE
ALL POSITIVE SELT-TALK, WITH THE EXCEPTION OF SITUATIONAL SELF-TALK, IS WRITTEN, READ, RECORDED, LISTENED TO, THOUGHT, AND SPOKEN IN THE PRESENT TENSE. IT IS ALWAYS STATED AS THOUGH THE DESIRED CHANGE HAS ALREADY TAKEN PLACE. BY DOING THIS, YOU ARE GIVING YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS MIND A COMPLETED PICTURE OF THE ACCOMPLISHED TASK, YOU ARE PRESENTING YOUR CONTROL CENTER WITH THE COMMAND THAT SAYS, "THAT IS WHAT I CHOOSE. THIS IS THE 'ME' I WANT YOU TO CREATE FOR ME". THE MORE FINISHED OR COMPLETE THE PICTURE, THE MORE SPECIFIC THE DIRECTIONS YOU ARE GIVING YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS MIND WILL BE.
WHEN YOU WANT TO GIVE NEW DIRECTIONS TO YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS YOU WOULD NOT SAY, AS AN EXAMPLE, " I AM GOING TO LOSE WEIGHT". WHEN YOU SAY, "I AM GOING TO... WHAT ARE YOU ACTUALLY TELLING YOUR CONTROL CENTER? TOMORROW, LATTER, SOME OTHER TIME, I'LL LOSE WEIGHT IN THE FUTURE (I'M GOING TO) BUT FOR NOW, KEEP ME LIKE I AM". AND TOMORROW NEVER COMES.
STATE YOUR GOAL OR THE RESULT YOU WANT TO ACHIEVE IN THE PRESENT TENSE. BECAUSE THE SUBCONSCIOUS MIND DOES NOT KNOW WHAT IS TRUE AND WHAT IS NOT, IN TIME IT WILL ACCEPT WHAT YOU ARE TELLING IT AND ACT ON IT. BUT REMEMBER, IT WILL ATTEMPT TO FOLLOW THE EXACT WORDING OF THE DIRECTIONS YOU ARE GIVING IT.
I ALWAYS DO EVERYTHING I NEED TO DO, WHEN I NEED TO DO IT.
I NEVER ARGUE OR LET MY EMOTIONS WORK AGAINST ME.
I DON'T SMOKE.
I HAVE A GOOD MEMORY. I EASILY AND AUTOMATICALLY REMEMBER ANY NAME OR ANYTHING THAT IS IMPORTANT TO ME.
I EAT ONLY WHAT I SHOULD.
I AM A GOOD LISTENER. I HEAR EVERYTHING THAT IS SAID. I AM ATTENTIVE, INTERESTED, AND AWARE OF EVERYTHING THAT IS GOING ON AROUND YOU.
I HAVE THE COURAGE TO STATE MY OPINIONS. I TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR MYSELF AND EVERYTHING I SAY AND DO.
I NEVER SPEND MORE THAN I EARN. I AM FINANCIALLY RESPONSIBLE, BOTH FOR MY PRESENT AND FOR MY FUTURE.
I SET GOALS AND I FOLLOW THEM. I SET MY SIGHTS, TAKE THE APPROPRIATE ACTION, AND ACHIEVE MY GOAL.
I SPEND TIME WITH MY FAMILY AND MY LOVED ONE, I ENJOY SHARING THEIR LIVES WITH MINE AND MY LIFE WITH THEIRS.
EACH OF THESE EXAMPLES OF POSITIVE SELF-TALK DEALS DIRECTLY WITH "HABITS" - CONDITIONED STYLES OF BEHAVIOR THAT FRUSTRATE US OR HOLD US BACK. IN EACH CASE, THE EXAMPLES STATE THE CHANGE IN THE PRESENT TENSE, AS THOUGH THE DESIRED RESULT HAS ALREADY TAKEN PLACE, BUT EACH EXAMPLE STATES ONLY A SINGLE SELF-TALK PHRASE OR TWO OUT OF MANY THAT, IN ACTUAL PRACTICE, YOU WOULD USE TO CREATE THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO MAKE.
WHEN YOU ARE USING SELF-TALK TO CHANGE A HABIT, AFFECT AN ATTITUDE, OR CREATE INTERNAL MOTIVATION, IT WORKS MOST EFFECTIVELY WHEN YOU BUILD A SOLID BODY OF SELF-TALK AROUND THE SUBJECT YOU ARE WORKING ON. ONE PHRASE OF THE RIGHT KIND OF SELF-TALK CAN HAVE AN EFFECT ON YOUR BEHAVIOR, BUT IT IS ONLY WHEN YOU PAINT AN ENTIRELY NEW PICTURE FOR YOUR SUBCONSCIOUS MIND THAT YOU WILL DERIVE THE FULL BENEFIT FROM YOUR SELF-TALK.
IF YOU WERE TO CHOOSE ONE OF THE EXAMPLES WE JUST USED, AND WANTED TO CHANGE AN OLD HABIT BY USING JUST ONE SELF-TALK PHRASE ONLY, NO MATTER HOW OFTEN YOU REPEATED THAT BIT OF SELL-TALK, IT WOULD HAVE ONLY LIMITED RESULTS, INSTEAD, START WITH THAT ONLY PHRASE AND EXTEND IT, AND TO IT, AND COVER EVERY PART OF THE PROBLEM BY INCLUDING SELT-TALK PHRASES THAT COVER EVERY HIDDEN CORNER.
REMEMBER, YOUR NEW SELF-TALK IS THE NAVIGATION SYSTEM YOU'RE USING TO CHART YOUR NEW DESTINATION AND DETERMINE YOUR COURSE, DIRECTION, ALTITUDE, AND SPEED. SO BE SPECIFIC AND BE THROUGH. DON'T EXPECT VAGUE DIRECTIONS, HINTS OF SOLUTIONS, AND SHADOWS OF EXPECTATIONS TO GET YOU WHERE YOU'RE GOING.
BE SPECIFIC
WHEN YOU USE SELF-TALK, LEAVE NO STONE UNTURNED. ISOLATE THE PROBLEM, LOOK AT IT FROM EVERY ANGLE, MAKE A LISTG OF EVERY AREA WITHIN THAT PROBLEM, AND ADD A LINE OF SELF-TALK TO COVER IT. WHILE I HAVE FOUND FEW PROBLEMS THAT CAN BE SOLVED WITH A SINGLE PHRASE OR TWO OF SELF-TALK, I HAVE FOUND THAT IN MOST CASES ANY SPECIFIC PROBLEM OR GOAL CAN BE COVERED WITH AS FEW AS A DREAM OR SO WELL-WORDED SELF-TALK PHRASE.
LET'S LOOK AT AN EXAMPLE OF SELF-TALK FOR CHANGING HABITS. IN THIS INSTANCE WE'LL USE SELF-TALK TO TACKLE A HABIT THAT HOLDS A LOT OF PEOPLE BACK FROM REACHING THEIR FULL POTENTIAL - THE HABIT OF WASTING TIME ON WORRY. CONQUERING JUST THIS ONE NEGATIVE HABIT HAS TURNED UNDERACHIEVERS INTO WINNERS AND GIVEN THEM EXTRA TIME, PEACE OF MIND, AND A FRESH NEW OUTLOOK ON LIFE.
ONCE AGAIN, WHEN YOU READ THE EXAMPLES OF HABIT-CHANGING SELF-TALK, NOTICE THAT THE SELF-TALK DOESN'T HUST TALK ABOUT THE SYMPTOMS - IT BREAKS THE OLD HABIT DOWN AND GETS AT ITS ROOTS. THE NEW POSITIVE SELF-TALK COVERS THE PROBLEM FROM EVERY ANGLE. YOU SHOULD, BY READING THESE FEW PHRASES OF SELF-TALK COVERS THE PROBLEM FROM EVERY ANGLE. YOU SHOULD, BY READING THESE FEW PHRASES OF SELF-TALK, VERY QUICKLY RECOGNIZE THAT THE DIFFERENCE IT CAN MAKE IS NOT ONE THAT WILL OCCUR BY USING JUST A SIMPLE PHRASES OR TWO.
SELF-TALK IS AT ITS STRONGEST AND MOST EFFECTIVE WHEN IT IS COMPOSED OF A SPECIFIC SET OF CONCISELY WORDED DIRECTIONS - USUALLY A GROUP OF DOZEN OR MORE COMBINED PHRASES, LINKED OF THE BETTER YOU THAT YOU WOULD LIKE TO BECOME, OR THE CHANGE IN YOUR LIFE YOU WOULD LIKE TO CREATE.
IN THIS EXAMPLE THE OLD HABIT HAS BEEN SUPPORTED WITH DAILY NEGATIVE SELF-TALK - THE KIND WE TALKED ABOUT EARLIER. "NO MATTER WHAT I DO, IM STRESSED OUT ALL THE TIME". I JUST CAN'T RELAX, OR THE PROBLEMS IN MY LIFE NEVER STOP. I CAN'T GET A BREAK!, THAT'S THE OLD PROGRAMMING. BUT THE NEW HABIT CHANGING SELF-TALK LOOKS AT ALL OF THOSE THINGS DIFFERENTLY.
IN THE FOLLOWING SELF-TALK, WATCH EVERY PHRASES FOR THE PICTURE IT PRESENTS, NOTE THE INSTRUCTIONS THAT ARE BEING GIVEN, WORK FOR WORD, THE SUBCONSCIOUS MIND OF THE INDIVIDUALS WHO USED TO THINK THAT STRESS AND WORRY WERE DESTINED TO BE A PERMENT PROBLEM.
THIS IS THE KIND OF POWERFUL SELF-TALK THAT CREATES A COMPLETELY, NEW, BETTER MENTAL ENVIROMENT. IN THIS EXAMPLE, IT SHOWS YOU A NATURAL, NEW PICTURE OF YOURSELF ACTUALLY BEING THE WORRY-FIRE, MORE PRODUCTIVE PERSON PERSON YOU WOULD LIKE TO BECOME.
