Today is a new day. The sun has risen again shedding new light on your life and any issues you are currently facing. This is fantastic because it gives you the opportunity to make today count in a way that you have not done so to date.
New beginnings
It’s easy sometimes to get caught up with the way the world and your part in it is going and to carry this through from one day to the next. However, if you can start afresh every day instead of carrying over your problems, then you will find that you have renewed vigour and new energy to tackle them.
Now I can hear you saying that if you can’t pay your mortgage on Friday, then it’s unlikely that you’ll be able to pay it on Saturday so what I’m saying is all ‘bunkum!” But this is not what I’m saying. I’m talking about your THOUGHTS about your problems. This is much more important because our thoughts lead to emotions that affect our vibrational frequency, and that affects what we attract into our life.
I remember my father saying to me “Sufficient unto the day is the evil thereof”. It’s quite an old-fashioned saying and I remember not understanding it at the time when I was a child. However, in time, I have come to understand this as meaning, “don’t carry on your negative thoughts about anything, into the next day” and to let things go more.
New thoughts, new things
If you have a problem in your life that you are trying to work through, one of the most disabling things that can happen is to become entrenched in, or stuck in an idea about that problem. Look what happened in the First World War when each side became stuck in their thoughts about the issues involved. Millions of people dug literal trenches and fought for years, killing many innocents in an attempt to justify the ‘thoughts’ of the people at the top. Inevitably, this NEVER solves the problem because the other side (or your problem) just digs in deeper too. What is needed in these situations is more creative thinking, more thinking outside of the box, and more understanding of different perspectives.
This is true about any problem that you may be facing. Instead of waking up each day and thinking the same negative thoughts about the problem, what will help you more is to wake up afresh one day and think about the problem differently. That way you may discover an insight or something you have missed seeing before that will lead you to a solution.
“But my problem is different…”
OK I get it – but for example, let’s take the example of “I cannot pay my mortgage” that we mentioned earlier that we have been saying to ourselves on Friday (and most likely for the entire month beforehand). This thought is a negative thought. It starts with the words “I can’t” for a start, which will put you into a negative frame of mind. It is more difficult from this perspective to see a way out and as we know, thoughts attract like thoughts. So if you start with “I can’t”, then this will attract more negative thoughts such as “I’ll never be able to” or “This is hopeless” and you can see how this spiral of negativity can quickly take hold. These are not good thoughts to have if you are trying to get yourself out of the situation and solve the ‘problem’.
What would be more empowering and more useful to you is to change the thought. With the new day, take the opportunity to change your thought and really make that day, or TODAY, count. So when we wake up on Saturday, a better thought to have would be “I wonder how I can find a way to pay my mortgage”. Instantaneously this puts you in a more positive place, because it a) assumes that there is a way to solve the problem, and b) has started the process of you attracting more positive thoughts and a solution.
This new thinking doesn’t have to mean you launch straight into lots of affirmations about “I can pay my mortgage” that you really don’t believe deep down yet. This will be counter-productive. But moving your thoughts gradually as I have described, is super powerful.
“Yes but…”
In our mortgage example, thinking differently might lead you to some ideas that you had not previously considered, or that you had overlooked including:
- talking to your mortgage company to ask for more time
- talking to a debt management counsellor to ask for help
- renting out a room in your house temporarily
- getting a second/third job to help ease you through a difficult time
- selling some things you no longer need
- downsizing
- moving to a different location
- creating an action plan involving some or all of the above
This is just an example, but the point is, thinking differently each day will lead to different actions that lead to different results.
How to think differently
Here are some examples of ways that you can start your thoughts off in a more positive way. You can use these about any problem you have:
- I wonder if there is a way I could….
- I wonder how others have dealt positively with this situation…
- There must be a solution somewhere, I just have to find it…
- Today is a new day that will bring new ideas…
- It’s exciting to think that today will be different…
- Help is always on the way, I’m looking forward to receiving something new today…
- Other people find a way out of this situation, so there must be a way…
- I’m sure I can ask for help with this situation that will bring new insights that I haven’t thought of…
- A problem shared is a problem halved – let’s ask for some advice on this…
Hopefully, you can see how thinking anew each day can set you up for a different day ahead – one in which you truly do feel and act differently, which will always lead to new situations. Remember the adage:
If you always do what you’ve always done
You’ll always get what you always got
It’s true – you can’t make a blueberry muffin if you are following the recipe for an omelette. You have to start by doing something different, and in this case, we are talking about getting your initial thoughts in order and changing those. After all, they are the one thing that you have total control over. You cannot control other people or events outside of you, but YOU CAN CONTROL YOUR THOUGHTS. That is your true power, so why not use it today to really ‘make today count?’
Wishing you all a wonderfully productive day. Just think carefully about what you write in your thought bubble today!
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Every new day gives you the opportunity to do something beautiful and useful. You have been given the opportunity to wake up alive and well, take advantage of it and thank God every morning. Problems are there to remind us that we live a completely normal life. How we deal with it is up to us.
Hi Bojana. You are so right about this. It’s not what happens that matters, but how we deal with what happens that makes all the difference. I’m reminded of a poem called “Princes and Kings” by R. Lee Sharpe which says the same thing. You can read it here. All the best to you today. Gail
What a lovely idea. Start each day afresh and don’t carry over your worries from the previous day, because each day is new with great promise and we tend to take this for granted.
Love your ideas for thinking out a problem more creatively, rather than focusing on the negative ‘I can’t’ words. If you can adopt these thoughts and try and make them second nature then your life is bound to improve over time. How can it not?
Hi Michel. Thanks for taking the time to read and leave a comment. I’m glad you like the article and ways to help make your thinking more positive. You can’t jump from despair straight away to joy, but you can move up the emotional scale one step at a time, and switching to saying “I wonder if” or “I might be able to” are good ways to start. Hope you have a great day. Gail