A wise person once said to me that listening to negative thoughts all day is like having the world’s largest CD collection (or I guess nowadays we would say “The world’s largest iTunes library) and all day choosing to listen to the music you hate the most. The music that depresses you. The music that sets your teeth on edge. The music that makes it impossible for you to relax. Music that makes you cover your ears and shout “Somebody, please turn this terrible noise off!”
Well, guess what, friends? You can. Simple as that. Just as you would flip to the next song on your playlist, you can change your thinking. It’s your brain, is it not?
So let’s say you are listening to the playlist labeled “I’ll Never Amount to Anything”, featuring such hits as:
- Nothing I Do Ever Works
- No One Ever Gives Me a Chance
- Other People Have More Advantages Than Me
and the ever-popular I’m a Complete Failure and Nothing Ever Changes in My Life.
Ugh. Who wants to listen to that garbage? Seriously. Ditch those tracks. They’re badly produced and you definitely can’t dance to them.
Instead, try the playlist called “Every Moment is a New Opportunity for Me”. Take a deep cleansing breath and thrill to the sounds of:
- My Eyes and Heart are Wide Open
- The World Speaks in the Language of Potential
- I am Alive with Gratitude
- I Have the Capacity to Create Wonders
- I am Surrounded and Upheld by Love
Given the choice (and you do have the choice) could it be any clearer? A person who listens to the first playlist is going to be in a state of emotional paralysis. They’ll feel resentful, defeated, disempowered, bitter. Yes, these feelings generate thoughts, but isn’t it also true that thoughts keep us mired in negative feelings — tie us to them, anchor us in them? Now imagine what a person listening to the second playlist is going to feel: Hopeful. Open. Creative. A person who has these feelings sees paths opening everywhere — paths that begin in gratitude and branch off into joyful productivity.
Your thoughts are like your theme music. Your soundtrack. Choose your thoughts wisely. Listen to the tracks that inspire you to dance your way into the world. Turn off the noise and pump up the awesome jams.
Let’s get this party started.
