Don’t Believe Everything You Think
- May 1, 2023
- 3 min read
Written by: Steven Michael Eklin, Executive Contributor
Executive Contributors at Brainz Magazine are handpicked and invited to contribute because of their knowledge and valuable insight within their area of expertise.
Our brains are three-pound thought organs that can produce and process up to 70,000 thoughts per day. It’s an amazing structure that drives every movement and direction in the life that we travel. The brain is a powerful workhorse that is busy throughout our lifetimes thinking, calculating, and re-calculating. How we use it develops the patchwork patterns that shape our lives and determine who we are.
Image courtesy of Cleveland Clinic
We have advanced into a digital age of overwhelming information flowing to us and through us. This information superhighway inundates us on a continual basis. The advent of social media platforms along with normal daily stimuli, has created an array of interconnected networks that, if allowed to run free; literally assaults our thoughts and emotions in ways we’ve rarely experienced before.
If you are believing of everything you see, hear, read, and follow; it is little wonder that there has been a widespread increase in depression rates throughout the world. So many people have allowed themselves to be susceptible to believing all of what they see, hear, and read as truthful. The increase in “fears” that are derived from these sources is also escalating at a much higher rate in humans than ever previously recorded. Many people allow these fears to become thoughts of “What could happen” and increase their own depression from within.
But let’s take a breath, and a step back, and take control of what our daily intake is, how viable it truly is, and the legitimacy we give it regarding control over our lives. A recent study by behavioral therapists at The University of Pittsburgh stated that, in their findings, 91% of what we “fear” from these thoughts doesn’t come true. That’s a stunning statistic…91%.
So why do so many people allow these thoughts to prevail in their collective minds? Because generally, these automated responses are tied to what our beliefs are, and to what our present view of the world and the things that surround us is.
Thoughts have an indelible and incredible power over us. Real thoughts are truthful and necessary to make real decisions. Fantasy of thought can be whimsical and a necessary departure from what is going on around us. They may be necessary for a break in what is happening around us. But keep in perspective they are just that, whimsical fantasy thoughts, not reality. However, for those people whose thoughts do prey on them and become their fears, you must realize one important piece to this “thought” puzzle:
Thoughts are just that, thoughts…and nothing more. Allow them to come and go but move on from them.
Quit putting any emphasis on “what if” thinking that takes you down a rabbit hole of fear and emotion.
These thoughts are not real. They are only “what if” thoughts. No credibility needs to be given to them. It’s time to recognize these habitual thoughts as they are conjured up and eliminate them, for they are not real.
See them as “just another one”. Discredit the uncomfortable “what if” fear and emotion and move on…quickly. You’ll eventually (with continued practice) reach a point where you can laugh at these thoughts and at yourself rather than terrorize yourself into fear and possible depression. When you can accomplish this, you will see the natural progression of positivity begin to flow into your life, and your decisions and direction will correspondingly move forward also.
Don’t believe everything you think. Don’t let any negative thought(s) have control over your life. When you stop it, you’ll gain control, and these “fear thoughts” will lose their power in your reality.
Value your life and live it to its fullest potential. Manage your thoughts, recognize them for what they are…thoughts. Begin to build momentum towards a better you. You’ll thank yourself for this precious new gift you’ve given yourself called “control.”
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Steven Michael Eklin, Executive Contributor Brainz Magazine
Steve Eklin is a leadership expert, speaker, and high-level consultant. Today, he draws upon over 30 years’ worth of leadership experience to help organizations and individuals attain goals and new levels of success. He has spent over 35 years studying Personal Growth and being mentored by leaders such as Bob Proctor, Tony Robbins, and Tim Goad. He knows that lasting growth and transformation demands changing our existing paradigms and developing a new framework of thinking. As an award-winning Executive leader that has had proven successes in both entrepreneurial and Fortune 500 environments, his sole focus today is assisting people on making the changes that help them fulfill their life’s dreams.
