Written by: Tracy Wrocklage
Do you see the glass as half empty or half full? Do you view life as difficult and unfair, or do you see life as an opportunity for self-growth and exploration? Mindset is how you view the world around you. It is also how you view yourself. Do you have a positive mindset about your abilities and skills to achieve your goals or do you feel as though you are not good enough and do not measure up to others? This is your mindset.
The positive thing about your mindset is that you can change it. If you realize you have a negative mindset about your ability to be successful at your job, you can change that. The truth is, mindset plays a major role in how you live your life and if you aren’t exactly pleased with how it’s been going, you can do something about it. As Carol Dweck, the author of “Mindset: The New Psychology of Success” states, “We like to think of our champions and idols as superheroes who were born different from us. We don’t like to think of them as ordinary people who made themselves extraordinary”.
Here are 10 ways to change your mindset to help you feel more motivated, positive, and empowered:
- Practice Gratitude Often
Focusing on the things you are grateful for in your life is one of the quickest ways to change your mindset. You will suddenly realize there are many things to be grateful for. Gratitude helps us feel as though we have enough in life and are not lacking or not good enough. Keeping a gratitude journal is an easy way to practice gratitude daily. Each night, write down a few things you are grateful for. You will feel better instantly and in the long run, it will have a positive impact on your mindset.
2. Practice Self-Awareness
Check in with yourself often to bring awareness to your thoughts and emotions. Thoughts and emotions can be so automatic that oftentimes, we feel as though we are on autopilot. Take a few moments throughout the day to gauge your thoughts and feelings. Are you feeling positive and motivated or are you feeling down and stressed? This is a helpful way to monitor when your mindset could use some readjusting.
3. Journal
Journaling is an excellent tool to help with self-awareness. Set aside a few minutes daily to journal. This will help bring awareness to your thoughts and emotions. It may even help uncover thoughts and feelings you may have buried deep inside. Releasing these pent-up thoughts and emotions can help make room for a more positive mindset. Let go of the old thoughts that are holding you back.
4. Identify Limiting Beliefs and Challenge Them
This one is closely connected with journaling. Identifying the negative core beliefs that are holding you back is essential to changing your mindset. Through journaling, your core beliefs can become clearer. What are those thoughts that negatively impact your mindset? Once you discover what limiting beliefs are impacting your mindset, challenge them. Look for evidence that shows those thoughts are false and there is no basis of truth in them. If you feel you aren’t good enough, by challenging these beliefs you can change your mindset. Believe you are good enough and you can accomplish your goals.
5. View Experiences as Opportunities to Learn and Grow
We all experience difficult times. Mindset can play a major role in the ways these difficult times impact you. Try shifting your perspective in challenging times. Rather than viewing it as a negative time, try to view it as an opportunity to learn and grow. Challenge yourself to try to see times of great difficulty as a time to grow and step outside of your comfort zone.
6. Practice Self-Care
Take time to be kind to yourself. We often overload ourselves with expectations and responsibilities without giving ourselves a break. Taking time for self-care is a way to shift your mindset. By giving yourself time for something you enjoy, you will have a more positive outlook on life.
7. Use Positive Affirmations to Shift Your Perspective
Affirmations are mantras that you repeat either out loud or in your mind. They are positive and affirm a statement that you want to be true. You speak it as though it has already taken place. Affirmations will shift your mindset and help you feel more empowered and positive.
8. Embrace Your Imperfections
Bring awareness to your inner voice. Are you kind to yourself or are you mean and overbearing? Try embracing yourself, imperfections and all. This changes your mindset by positively viewing yourself rather than beating yourself up. Your mindset will become more positive when you accept yourself, your flaws, and all.
9. Meditation
Changing your mindset is just one of the many benefits of meditation. Meditation can change the way you view the world around you as well as the way you view yourself. Try shifting your mindset and becoming more empowered and mindful through meditation.
10. Look for the Positives
This one does not apply to every situation. Yes, there are times when it is not possible (nor appropriate) to look for the positives. I am not talking about those circumstances for this one. Try to find the positives in moments when your initial response would be negative. For example, you went on an interview for a job you wanted. A few weeks later, you find out they hired someone else. Yes, this can be difficult and stir up some negative thoughts and emotions. Allow yourself to feel those emotions but then try to find the positive. Perhaps the commute to the job would have been much farther than your current commute and it would take time away from being with your family or maybe that made room for an even better opportunity to arise. Looking for the positives can shift your mindset to one of hope and positivity. These are 10 ways to change your mindset. Try the ones that resonate with you the most. Changing your mindset is a process and takes time. Be patient with yourself and celebrate your wins along the